A lizard stopped play in the concluding practice for Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix.

McLaren’s Lando Norris led the way, four tenths clear of Mercedes’ George Russell, with Oscar Piastri third. Max Verstappen, only 15th on Friday, finished fourth – 0.894 seconds adrift of Norris.

But the one-hour session had to be suspended for four minutes when a 3ft monitor lizard found its way on to the temporary street circuit.

“We are told the track is clear, but just have a look for the lizard,” Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso was told over the radio.

“No, it is in the middle of the track,” Alonso replied. With the running red-flagged, a marshal began pursuit of the reptile, chasing it in an attempt to scoop it off the track.

The lizard won the early stages of the comical foot race before the official eventually removed it from harm’s way.

When the action resumed it was Norris, 59 points adrift of Verstappen in the championship standings, who held a clear advantage over his rivals. Charles Leclerc complained about the handling of his Ferrari and finished only fifth, nearly one second behind.

Qualifying to determine the grid for Sunday’s race gets under way at 21:00 local time (14:00 BST).