Lando Norris admitted that he “hated” questions about him Formula 1 fight for the title as he overtook rival Max Verstappen for the Sprint at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

Norris emerged the man the rest had to beat in sprint qualifying Brazil as he set an ominous pace on the Medium compound during the first two sessions.

But while he once again led the times with his initial lap in SQ3 on the Softs, Oscar Piastri managed to eclipse his McLaren teammate’s standard on the second attempt.

Norris was unable to respond to Piastri’s 1:08.899 as multiple mistakes in his final lap saw him pit and retire from the lap, relegating him to second.

“I think a big improvement on where I was earlier today,” commented Norris, who was fastest in FP1. “We fought a lot.

“A bit surprised we were so fast today, but a nice one for sure. A good turn. I made so many mistakes in my last lap and I pitted.

“But yeah, good job as a team. Like I said, I didn’t expect it. So a nice surprise and too many mistakes in my last lap.”

Norris asks Verstappen the question

Despite losing out to his teammate at the death, Norris will start two places ahead of reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen, who has a 47-point lead over the Briton.

However, Norris said he was not interested in where the Dutchman qualified as he insisted his focus is on making sure he maximizes his prospects.

When told that Verstappen will line up behind him tomorrow, Norris retorted: “I don’t care. I hate these questions so much.

“I’m going to compete, I don’t care where they qualify. For me, it’s just focusing on my own job. It’s the same question every time, but it doesn’t matter.

McLaren’s long-term pace is unknown

Norris, meanwhile, claimed that McLaren’s blistering pace in a lap around Interlagos offered no guarantee that it would be quick in race conditions in the Sprint.

“Tomorrow is a completely different day,” he warned. “So we’ll see.

“We’ve definitely made some good strides forward. So good and happy with today, but we’ll see in the Sprint.”

READ MORE – Oscar Piastri snatches Sprint pole from McLaren teammate Lando Norris in Brazil