Norris on pole in Sao Paulo with Piastri fourth

SAO PAULO :McLaren's Formula One championship leader Lando Norris took pole position for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix on Saturday with teammate and title rival Oscar Piastri qualifying fourth and Red Bull's Max Verstappen only 16th.

Mercedes' 19-year-old Italian rookie Kimi Antonelli joined the Briton, winner of the earlier sprint race, on the front row with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc qualifying third.

Australian Piastri is nine points behind Norris after crashing in the sprint.

Verstappen, third in the standings but 39 points behind Norris, suffered his worst qualifying performance in nearly four years.

(Writing by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Pritha Sarkar)