Rio De Janeiro, Oct 1 (IANS): Luis Suarez scored a late equaliser as Gremio salvaged a 1-1 away draw with Fortaleza in Brazil's Serie A championship.

Veteran playmaker Thiago Galhardo gave Fortaleza the lead from the penalty spot after a Reinaldo hand ball just before halftime, reports Xinhua.

But Gremio looked more cohesive as the game progressed and went close to scoring with a series of chances in the second half.

Suarez finally breached the hosts' defense when he ran onto Reinaldo's through ball before firing a first-time effort through the legs of goalkeeper Fernando Miguel and into the back of the net.

The result leaves Gremio second in Brazil's 20-team Serie A standings with 44 points from 25 games, seven points behind leaders Botafogo, who have a game in hand. Fortaleza are ninth, five points further back.

In other Brazilian Serie A fixtures on Saturday, Flamengo won 1-0 at home to Bahia, Sao Paulo prevailed 2-1 at home to Corinthians, Cuiaba cruised to a 3-0 home win over Fluminense and Atletico Mineiro won 2-0 at Internacional.