The Weekend Wrap: August 7-9, 2026
Yiheng Wang finished 0.01 off the 3x3 world record, Seth Nasol broke Oceania’s sub-1 2x2 barrier, and Patrick Ponce went undefeated in sets on his way to the PSL Michigan title.
Yiheng Wang came within one hundredth of the 3x3 world record before adding an Asian Record in One-Handed the following day, Seth Nasol became the first Oceanian competitor to officially average below one second in 2x2, and Patrick Ponce punched his ticket to Las Vegas without dropping a set at PSL Michigan.
Welcome back to the Speedcuber’s Digest Weekend Wrap, where we look at the most significant results and storylines from this past weekend.
Yiheng Wang Finishes 0.01 Off the 3x3 World Record
Yiheng Wang recorded a 2.77 3x3 single at Maoming Open 2026, finishing just 0.01 seconds behind Teodor Zajder’s 2.76 world record.
The solve is Yiheng’s first official sub-3 and gives him the Asian Record, surpassing Xuanyi Geng’s 2.80. It is also just the third official sub-3 single.
His final-round solves were:
3.87, (5.63), (2.77), 4.33, 3.99 = 4.06
Xuanyi finished second with a 4.23 average, while Hansen Yu completed the podium at 5.38.
After entering the weekend with the world record average of 3.51, Yiheng left Maoming with the second-fastest official single in history to go with it.
Xuanyi Answers Back in Zhanjiang
One day later, Yiheng and Xuanyi met again at Zhanjiang Open 2026.
This time, Xuanyi came out on top.
Xuanyi won the 3x3 final with a 4.34 average, followed by Yiheng at 4.44 and Hansen Yu at 4.60. Tymon Kolasiński finished fourth with 5.01, while Leo Borromeo finished ninth at 5.94.
Xuanyi’s winning solves were:
4.56, 3.84, 4.22, 4.64, 4.24 = 4.34
Hansen also produced a personal record average of 4.60, finishing ahead of Tymon in a final featuring three averages below five seconds.
The back-to-back competitions ultimately split the weekend between the world’s top two 3x3 solvers. Yiheng won Maoming, Xuanyi won Zhanjiang.
Neither produced another sub-4 average, but Yiheng’s 2.77 ensured their two-day matchup still delivered a major result.
Yiheng Adds a 5.85 One-Handed Asian Record
Yiheng was not finished after his 2.77.
During the One-Handed final in Zhanjiang, he recorded a 5.85 single, becoming just the second competitor to officially break six seconds in the event. The result ranks second in the world behind Dhruva Sai Meruva’s 5.66 world record and gives Yiheng the Asian Record.
The single came as part of a 9.29 personal record average:
(9.84), 9.45, (5.85), 9.60, 8.81 = 9.29
In roughly 24 hours, Yiheng recorded a 2.77 Asian Record in 3x3 and a 5.85 Asian Record in One-Handed.
Patrick Ponce Goes Undefeated at PSL Michigan
Patrick Ponce entered PSL Michigan as one of the favorites and left Port Huron with his ticket to the PSL Championship in Las Vegas.
Ponce did not lose a single set throughout the tournament, navigating the head-to-head bracket undefeated before beating reigning Canadian 3x3 champion Morgan Yeh in the final.
The result adds Ponce to a PSL Championship field that already includes Dylan Miller, reigning North American champion Kyle Santucci, and European Championship silver medalist Valerio Locatelli.
Unlike a traditional WCA average, PSL requires competitors to repeatedly beat the person standing across from them. Ponce did exactly that in Michigan, turning one of the weekend’s anticipated qualification battles into an undefeated run to Las Vegas.
Seth Nasol Breaks Oceania’s Sub-1 Barrier
Seth Nasol produced one of the weekend’s biggest surprises at Christchurch Winter 2026, recording a 0.98 2x2 average and becoming the first competitor representing Oceania to officially average below one second.
His solves were:
0.93, 0.83, 1.17, (0.73), (1.25) = 0.98
The result broke Roman Rudakov’s previous Oceanian Record of 1.02, which had stood since 2024.
It was also a massive individual jump for Nasol. He entered with a 1.44 personal best, meaning one average improved his PB by 0.46 seconds and took him from 15th in Oceania to first.
Connor Johnson finished second with a 1.16 personal record average, while China’s Yuki Gao placed third at 1.34.
After more than two years with the continental record sitting just above the barrier, Nasol finally pushed Oceania below one second.
New Jersey Final Produces Two Sub-4 Breakthroughs
At Mid-Atlantic Warm-Up 2026 in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Luke Griesser and Aaron Jake Wong both recorded their first official sub-4 3x3 singles in the same final. The competition took place August 9 at American Dream.
Luke recorded a 3.98, finally breaking four seconds after entering with a 4.01 personal best.
Aaron then produced the bigger surprise with a 3.34, improving his previous best of 4.56 by more than a second. The result tied Ryan Pilat for the second-fastest 3x3 single by an American, behind only Max Park’s 3.13, and placed Aaron ninth in the world.
The 3.34 came as part of Aaron’s 6.24 personal record average:
(3.34), 6.24, (8.24), 6.14, 6.36 = 6.24
Luke nearly produced an even bigger result in the same round:
4.22, (3.98), (8.03), 5.16+2, 4.91
Without the +2 penalty, those solves would have produced a 4.76 average. Instead, the penalty turned the 5.16 into a 7.16 and left Luke with a 5.43 average.
Between Yiheng’s two Asian Records, Seth Nasol breaking Oceania’s sub-1 barrier, Patrick Ponce qualifying for Las Vegas, and two Americans breaking four seconds in the same New Jersey final, the weekend delivered major results across the speedcubing world.