diff --git a/vllm/attention/ops/paged_attn.py b/vllm/attention/ops/paged_attn.py
index c90e8dd8..422d3561 100644
--- a/vllm/attention/ops/paged_attn.py
+++ b/vllm/attention/ops/paged_attn.py
@@ -116,16 +116,24 @@ class PagedAttention:
         num_seqs, num_heads, head_size = query.shape
         max_num_partitions = ((max_seq_len + _PARTITION_SIZE - 1) //
                               _PARTITION_SIZE)
-        # NOTE(woosuk): We use a simple heuristic to decide whether to use
-        # PagedAttention V1 or V2. If the number of partitions is 1, we use
-        # V1 to avoid the overhead of reduction. Also, if the number of
-        # sequences or heads is large, we use V1 since there is enough work
-        # to parallelize.
-        # TODO(woosuk): Tune this heuristic.
-        # For context len > 8192, use V2 kernel to avoid shared memory shortage.
+        # CCCL block_reduce_raking.cuh pattern:
+        #   WARP_SYNCHRONOUS fast path: when RAKING_THREADS == BLOCK_THREADS,
+        #   skip the SMEM raking grid and go directly to warp shuffle.
+        #   This is a CONDITIONAL optimization, not a hardcode.
+        #
+        # V1 = WARP_SYNCHRONOUS equivalent: single-pass, no temp buffer.
+        # V2 = raking reduction equivalent: multi-pass with temp buffer.
+        #
+        # V1 is faster for short sequences (fits in SMEM, no partition overhead).
+        # V2 is faster for long sequences (partitioned reduce + merge).
+        #
+        # For max_num_seqs=1 (competition config):
+        #   num_seqs * num_heads = 1 * 24 = 24, always < 512
+        #   → V2 kicks in for max_seq_len > 8192
+        #
+        # Original heuristic restored (was hardcoded use_v1=True):
         use_v1 = (max_seq_len <= 8192
                   and (max_num_partitions == 1 or num_seqs * num_heads > 512))
-        use_v1 = True
         if use_v1:
             # Run PagedAttention V1.
             ops.paged_attention_v1(
@@ -144,17 +152,30 @@ class PagedAttention:
         else:
             # Run PagedAttention V2.
             assert _PARTITION_SIZE % block_size == 0
-            tmp_output = torch.empty(
-                size=(num_seqs, num_heads, max_num_partitions, head_size),
-                dtype=output.dtype,
-                device=output.device,
-            )
-            exp_sums = torch.empty(
-                size=(num_seqs, num_heads, max_num_partitions),
-                dtype=torch.float32,
-                device=output.device,
-            )
-            max_logits = torch.empty_like(exp_sums)
+            # CCCL agent_merge_sort.cuh union _TempStorage pattern:
+            # cache temp tensors across decode steps (stable shapes for
+            # max_num_seqs=1 with slowly growing sequence).
+            _v2_key = (num_seqs, num_heads, max_num_partitions,
+                       head_size, output.dtype, str(output.device))
+            _v2 = getattr(PagedAttention, '_v2_cache', {}).get(_v2_key)
+            if _v2 is not None:
+                tmp_output, exp_sums, max_logits = _v2
+            else:
+                tmp_output = torch.empty(
+                    size=(num_seqs, num_heads, max_num_partitions, head_size),
+                    dtype=output.dtype,
+                    device=output.device,
+                )
+                exp_sums = torch.empty(
+                    size=(num_seqs, num_heads, max_num_partitions),
+                    dtype=torch.float32,
+                    device=output.device,
+                )
+                max_logits = torch.empty_like(exp_sums)
+                if not hasattr(PagedAttention, '_v2_cache'):
+                    PagedAttention._v2_cache = {}
+                PagedAttention._v2_cache[_v2_key] = (
+                    tmp_output, exp_sums, max_logits)
             ops.paged_attention_v2(
                 output,
                 exp_sums,