Iowa will crown its first state champions this weekend. Elsewhere, Leo Borromeo returns after winning last year’s Visayas Championship, while Lev Golub looks to improve on his runner-up finish at Ukrainian Nationals.
Welcome back to the Speedcuber’s Digest Weekend Preview, where we look ahead at the potential storylines going into the weekend.
Iowa Crowns Its First Champions
Iowa Championship 2026 takes place September 19-20 in West Des Moines. There is no defending state champion this time. Everyone is chasing the first title.
Brian Johnson leads the overall 3x3 field with a 5.20 best average, ahead of Carter Kucala at 6.49 and Nathan Phillips at 6.64. The Iowa title race starts with Brody Rhoades, who sits fourth overall at 6.88.
Rhoades leads fellow Iowa residents Marcus Zook at 8.75 and Max McGill at 9.07. His 6.88 came in a winning final at Corny Cubers Iowa Classic 2025.
Square-1 is another event to watch. Johnson brings a 2.85 world record single and leads the field with a 5.25 best average. Nathan Rahn follows at 6.46, with Kucala at 7.41.
Borromeo Returns to Visayas
Visayas Championship 2026 runs September 19-20 in Cebu, Philippines, with Borromeo the clear 3x3 favorite by personal-best average.
His 5.04 leads Caleb Valenzuela at 7.37 and Miguel Gonzaga at 8.33.
Borromeo won last year’s competition in Pavia with a 5.50 average. That edition was the first Visayas Championship held outside Cebu, and the competition returns to Cebu this year.
His 4x4 result was another highlight last year: a 20.81 national record average that remains his personal best. He leads this year’s 4x4 field by almost 10 seconds over Gonzaga’s 30.27 and brings a 16.52 best single.
With those gaps, Borromeo enters as the favorite in both events. Whether he can improve on last year’s results gives us another reason to follow.
Golub Leads the Ukrainian Title Race
Ukrainian Nationals 2026 takes place September 18-20 in Lviv, with Lev Golub leading the 3x3 field at 6.44.
Ostap Bukatiuk follows at 7.06, ahead of Vladyslav Hryniuk at 7.46 and Oleksii Lasiichuk at 7.70.
Golub finished second at last year’s nationals with 7.98, behind Ihor Sukhovatenko at 7.00. Sukhovatenko is not on the current registration list, while third-place finisher Lasiichuk returns.
Hryniuk gives us another title defense to follow in 5x5. He won last year with a 52.11 national record average and now leads the field with a 48.76 personal best. Golub follows at 55.40, with Serhii Fedorniak close behind at 55.80.