The opening of the 2026 NASCAR Brasil Series season, held this Sunday (12) in Santa Cruz do Sul (RS), featured as its main highlight the Gaucho Vitor Genz, from Full Time, who won Race 2 and left the round as the championship leader.
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Genz started at the front after his performance in Saturday’s qualifying Sprint Race and remained under constant pressure throughout the race, in a race marked by intense battles and a very close pack. Even so, he managed to sustain a strong pace, wait for the right moment, and manage the lead until the checkered flag.
The confirmation of the victory came after the technical analysis by the Brazilian Automobile Confederation, which applied a penalty to Gabriel Casagrande’s #83 car for a weight irregularity (200 grams below the minimum required), consolidating Genz at the top of the final result.
After the race, the driver celebrated the team’s performance and the high-level start to the season: “In this first round of the year, I only have to thank the sponsors and the entire team. It was an excellent job and I am very happy. We will look for more victories,” he stated.
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He also reinforced the consistency of the weekend: “We did a great job, we had a good pace throughout the race. We finished the race with a first and a second place, the championship lead, and pole position. There is nothing to complain about. Now it’s time to celebrate and wait for the next round,” he declared.
With the result, Genz leaves Santa Cruz do Sul in the lead of the season and gains momentum as one of the main names at the start of the RiSE26 era. The next round of the NASCAR Brasil Series will be on May 3, in Cascavel (PR).
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