Manchester Cubing League - Second 2026

A blistering 15.61 single from Ben Stokes in 3x3x3 Blindfolded stood out as the defining mark of the day, setting a new United Kingdom national record. The high-stakes nature of blindfolded solving requires total memorisation before turning a single layer, and Stokes seized the top spot with absolute authority. His record-breaking performance ignited action across the venue as competitors geared up for an intense schedule packed into a single, high-tempo day of speedcubing excellence.

Held on May 25, 2026, the Manchester Cubing League - Second 2026 brought 43 competitors to 422 Manchester in Manchester, Greater Manchester, United Kingdom. The tournament layout presented a demanding test of pacing, featuring 11 rounds across 8 distinct events. While some disciplines offered multi-round pathways with progressive cutoffs, several puzzle categories ran as single-round finals, giving participants only five solves to secure their standing without room for early errors.

The traditional Rubik's Cube featured the deepest bracket, spanning three full rounds for 40 competitors. Caleb Wolf Dunn mastered the multi-stage progression, delivering a decisive 5.86 winning average alongside the tournament's fastest 3x3 results single of 5.41. Benjamin Espinosa secured second place with a 7.64 average, while Jacob Sherwen Brown took third with 7.84. Dunn demonstrated remarkable versatility by also claiming the Clock title in a single-round final, finishing with a 3.22 average ahead of Blue James at 3.60 and Espinosa at 3.98.

In the 2x2x2 Cube, a field of 37 entrants was filtered through two fast-moving rounds where split-second margins dictated advancement. Tommy Kiely claimed victory with a rapid 1.40 average and a best single of 1.23. Kalin Doherty of Ireland took the runner-up spot averaging 1.69, while Stokes added another podium finish to his day by grabbing third place with an average of 1.77. The snappy round cuts rewarded explosive starts and punished minor handling slips.

Ryan Eckersley proved to be a dominant force across technical formats and blindfolded disciplines. In Square-1, a direct final with 27 competitors, Eckersley took first place with a 9.12 average, outpacing Irish contenders Adam Bermingham and Ben Timmons, who posted 10.16 and 10.82 respectively. Eckersley then swept the complex blind categories, winning 4x4x4 Blindfolded with an average of 1:25.62 and 5x5x5 Blindfolded with an average of 3:25.95, establishing absolute mastery across memory-intensive events.

The lower levels of the standings revealed massive individual leaps that the overall podium tables often overlook. Giorgos Sofroniou of Cyprus delivered a major breakthrough in Skewb, recording a 2.92 personal best that was 30.5 percent faster than his previous mark of 4.20, while also finishing 9th in Clock with a personal best of 6.84. Jack Adams conquered six events and improved his 3x3x3 Blindfolded best by 25 percent down to 1:39.53, alongside a 7th-place finish in 4x4x4 Blindfolded. Callum Inglis took on a full slate of eight events, securing 4th in 5x5x5 Blindfolded and dropping his 3x3x3 Blindfolded mark by 24.6 percent to 47.09.

Jack Tsang improved his Clock best by 25.3 percent to 7.11 to earn 15th place, while Gethin Thomas slashed 19.2 percent off his 2x2x2 Cube best down to 11.29. Several competitors also embraced fresh challenges at this WCA competition. Charlie Tsang set three personal bests including a 17.75 Clock time that was 17.8 percent faster than before. Herne Halley Smedley tackled Skewb for the first time with a 10.99 finish, alongside a 13.9 percent improvement on 2x2x2 Cube. Meanwhile, Edward Fang registered his first official 2x2x2 Cube solve with a time of 3.60.

First-time entrants also marked their entrance into speed cubing at the 2026 gathering. Albert Sun completed his first official solves with an 8.24 on 2x2x2 Cube and 20.11 on 3x3x3 Cube, while Tyla Sweet registered times of 12.65 and 44.87 across both events. Jayden Reade posted a 13.20 single in his first 3x3x3 Cube appearance, and Róża Walewska recorded a debut 3x3x3 Cube time of 59.08. In Skewb, Thomas Vickers earned first place with a 2.68 average, edging Rufus Prabhu-Desai at 3.04 and Jacob Sherwen Brown at 3.62.

Across the entire cubing competition, athletes from the United Kingdom gathered 19 podium spots, Ireland took 4, and Malaysia earned 1 courtesy of Nevins Chan Pak Hoong in 5x5x5 Blindfolded. The structured rounds and uncompromising finals at the Manchester Cubing League - Second 2026 provided a definitive showcase of mental endurance and precision handling that will set the standard for the season ahead.