Stella, who was born in Belgium and spent her university years in New Zealand, took to Instagram to share her reaction to the big news and dedicate her win to women everywhere.
“Thank you to @maximmag for naming me No1 hottest girl 2016,” she wrote alongside a photo of her sultry cover.
“Ps: I want to share this with all the women around the world because we are all Number 1,” she added.
The 25-year-old blonde bombshell, who has walked for Victoria’s Secret, Balmain, Versace, Marc Jacobs and Chanel, shows off her trim figure in the steamy cover for the issue. Clad in nothing but a yellow thong and gold harness, the supermodel looks fierce and flawless in the skin-baring shoot.
Stella has topped this year’s Hot 100 list. Photo: Instagram
In the accompanying interview, however, Stella insists she didn’t always feel so beautiful growing up and reveals she only “grew into [herself]” when she hit her 20s.
“I know I was not the hottest chick at school! We all peaked a little later than the other girls,” she confessed, name-dropping model BFFs Bella Hadid and Barbara Palvin as two others who were similarly late bloomers.
Stella’s skyrocketing career has seen the model – who was previously linked to Miley Cyrus and Kristen Stewart – strut her stuff for a variety of prestigious designers and strike a pose for several major fashion campaigns. Incredibly, Stella (whose parents hail from Northern Ireland) also became the first Irish Angel at Victoria’s Secret, just one year after landing the coveted contract.
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It was all a dream come true for Stella, who says she’s a believer in positive thinking and visualising her goals.
“You hope for these things and you are grateful to be given the opportunity, and then you just have to throw yourself into the work,” she told Maxim.
Stella walking for Victoria’s Secret last year (left) and at the 2016 Met Gala in New York (right). Photos: Getty
