**Lando Norris Tops Practice Session at Brazilian Grand Prix**

In the sole practice session for the 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix, Lando Norris led the pack for McLaren, while reigning Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen surprisingly placed only 15th. An impressive performance by Haas substitute driver Ollie Bearman saw him claim the third-fastest time on the board.

Norris clocked the quickest lap of the session right at the end, with a notable time of 1m10.610s. This remarkable lap was 0.181 seconds faster than George Russell’s best effort in his Mercedes. Bearman, who is filling in for the ailing Kevin Magnussen at least until the conclusion of Saturday's sprint race, recorded one of only five times under 1m11s. His performance was significantly better than his Haas teammate Nico Hulkenberg, who secured the eighth position.

Alex Albon put on a strong display for Williams, securing the fifth-fastest time while running on medium (C4) tires throughout the session. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, who had moderate expectations for their performance at this particular track, followed closely behind in sixth and seventh.

Fernando Alonso and Pierre Gasly rounded out the top ten with commendable runs for Aston Martin and Alpine, respectively. Verstappen, although seemingly on a competitive lap, decided to abort his attempt on soft compounds and headed to the pits, leaving the real potential of the Red Bull somewhat ambiguous. Team principal Christian Horner suggested that Verstappen might have finished around third or fourth had he completed his run.

Sergio Perez, on the other hand, managed only the 19th fastest time despite his initial competitive pace on medium tires. His attempt on the soft (C5) compound didn’t yield a significant improvement, adding just marginal gains over his medium tire performance.