Verstappen fastest in final Brazilian practice, Hamilton stops

Max Verstappen topped the final practice session for the Brazilian Grand Prix, though just two hundredths of a second separated him from Andrea Kimi Antonelli after their qualifying simulations on soft tyres. Verstappen was frustrated by continued problems with his steering wheel, and he is one of five drivers taking a grid penalty this weekend. Lando Norris was a tenth of a second behind Antonelli, with George Russell fourth in the other Mercedes.

Lewis Hamilton did not complete a run on soft tyres after trouble with his Ferrari, peeling into the pits with smoke coming from the rear of the car with almost half the session remaining. Both Ferrari drivers will serve grid penalties this weekend. Aston Martin's reliability problems continued, with Lance Stroll pitting after seven laps with a suspected energy recovery system fault and finishing at the bottom of the times.

Sergio Perez is under investigation for throwing an item out of his car during the session. Dark clouds were gathering at the end of the session, raising the threat of rain before qualifying.