Stevens left it late in the 10-minute Hyperpole shootout to usurp stablemate and countryman Jack Aitken, vaulting to the head of the Hypercar order on his final lap as he outpaced the sister Cadillac by the slender margin of just 0.048 seconds.

The result marked the second year in succession that the Anglo-American outfit has posted the fastest two times around the Autódromo José Carlos Pace, although 12 months ago, the #38 car was relegated to third on the grid by a penalty for blocking. 

It also represents the third consecutive front row start in 2026 for the V-Series.R, which remains in search of its first podium finish since last year’s breakthrough victory in Brazil. Stevens is hopeful that trophy-free run is about to end.

“It was obviously a great qualifying for us,” acknowledged the 35-year-old. “Big thanks to the team for giving us the package to go out there and perform – we’ve worked really well and I’m very proud to be part of this project. We’ve still got far to go, but hopefully tomorrow we can get another win here.”

It was a similar story in LMGT3, where like in 2025, there will be an Aston Martin Vantage at the front of the grid. That was courtesy of a stunning Hyperpole performance by ‘super-sub’ Kobe Pauwels, who built upon an excellent effort by rookie Bronze-rated driver Gray Newell in the opening phase of qualifying. The British brand’s 72nd FIA WEC pole position across all categories is a new series record.

The Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo will get underway at 11:30 local time (GMT-3) on Sunday, 12 July.