Under the Emilia-Romagna sunshine, the Qualifying session for the 2025 6 Hours of Imola was fiercely contested between the 18 Hypercar prototypes entered in the second round of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). Just like in Qatar, Jean-Eric Vergne (#93) and Stoffel Vandoorne (#94) were chosen for the task. On a 38°C track and fitted with medium-compound tires, Belgian driver Stoffel Vandoorne clocked a time of 1:31.010 on his first flying lap before improving to 1:30.848 — the eleventh-fastest time, just five hundredths of a second away from a Hyperpole spot. Also running on four medium-compound tires, Jean-Eric Vergne saw his first two laps (1:31.222 and an impressive 1:30.799) cancelled for track limits. On his final flying lap, the Frenchman managed to set the tenth-fastest time of Qualifying (1:30.833), securing a place in the Hyperpole. Back on track with a fresh set of medium tires, Jean-Eric Vergne was able to complete two timed laps during the short ten-minute Hyperpole session. He continued to improve, setting a time of 1:30.301 — the seventh-fastest. The PEUGEOT 9X8 #93 will therefore start from the fourth row on the grid.
Jean-Marc Finot, Senior VP of Stellantis Motorsport:
“This is our second Hyperpole in two races, after going without since Qatar 2024. I’d say the trend is positive, but we have to keep fighting. Our drivers set very fast laps in Qualifying and extracted the maximum potential from the car. We’re better positioned on the grid than last year, which is good for avoiding the kind of incidents we experienced at the start back then. It’s going to be a long race, with plenty of traps to avoid and, of course, opportunities to seize. The team is highly motivated by the progress we’ve seen today.”
Jean-Eric Vergne (PEUGEOT 9X8 #93):
“I found out my first two laps were cancelled for track limits at the chicane during my cooldown lap. I had to get the tires back up to temperature for one last attempt — I gave it everything even though it was tough on the rear tires. We made it into Hyperpole with a bit of luck, and then I put in a very strong lap to qualify the #93 in P7, with which I am very pleased.”
