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The McLaren driver just pipped fellow driver and championship contender Oscar Piastri for the quickest lap in the dying seconds of the practice session at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Norris, who took the title advantage from his teammate by just one point after winning in Mexico City two weeks ago, topped the Australian by a tiny margin of 0.023secs.

Before then, Oscar Piastri had been the fastest McLaren driver throughout the hour before sprint qualifying due at 18:30 GMT.

Max Verstappen, the other racer in the points battle, lying with a 36-point deficit behind Norris, was classified in 17th position as his Red Bull team followed a alternative strategy.

His teammate Yuki Tsunoda was the only driver to go off, though minor, when he spun at the fourth corner during the early running.

The Japanese spun out over the curbs on exit before spinning across the run-off area, and was lucky to escape with just a minor contact of the barrier.

Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton also spun, at the very end of the session, spinning around through the fast downhill corner approaching the final corner on to the pit straight.

The seven-time champion finished practice in P19, one place behind team-mate Charles Leclerc.

Norris and Piastri were well clear of the other competitors, with Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber third fastest, 0.619 seconds slower than Piastri's pace.

The Aston Martin of the Spanish driver was fourth fastest, with the Sauber of Bortoleto ahead of Mercedes' Russell and Alpine's Pierre Gasly and the Williams of Sainz.