The Big Cube Melbourne 2024

A blistering 6.10 single and a 7.41 final average by Phoenix Patterson delivered victory in the marquee event at The Big Cube Melbourne 2024, closing out an intense day of high-calibre speedcubing. Held at the Mitcham Baptist Church in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia on July 20, 2024, the one-day gathering drew 108 competitors across four events and eight rounds of fierce action. Reaching any final proved a demanding task amid the sheer depth of the roster.

The 3x3x3 Cube contest represented the busiest bracket of the meeting, drawing 106 entrants who had to navigate three distinct rounds to secure a spot on the stage. Patterson captured first place over Roman Rudakov, who logged a 7.59 average for second, while Lennon Hughes secured third with an 8.50 average. The depth across the 3x3 results meant that even minor execution errors in the opening stages proved costly for those aiming for the podium.

In the 2x2x2 Cube event, 91 entrants lined up across three rounds, making it another massive bracket where advancement was decided by fractions of a second. Roman Rudakov claimed the title with a 1.56 winning average and a best single of 1.20, edging Jacob Joshi, who finished second with a 1.64 average. Harry Forbes rounded out the podium in third place at 1.69, completing a sweep for Australian competitors in the rapid-fire event.

The longer formats and specialty categories presented a sharp test of consistency. Divnoor Bajwa captured the 4x4x4 Cube crown in a direct, single-round clash of 58 competitors, recording a 34.82 average and a 31.26 single. Phoenix Patterson added another podium appearance by taking second place with a 37.09 average, while Myles Jarman secured third on 38.19. In the single-round Clock event featuring 40 entrants, Alex Butera took the win with a 5.39 average, ahead of Roman Rudakov in second at 6.44 and Oliver Drew in third at 6.48.

Behind the fight for silverware, individual breakthroughs defined the atmosphere of the cubing competition. Zachary Bridgeman delivered a dramatic leap in the 2x2x2 Cube, setting a personal best of 6.93 seconds that was 74.6 percent faster than his prior standard. Muhammad Zohaib Arsalan Khan took on two disciplines, cutting 59.2 percent off his 2x2x2 Cube mark with a 2.29 personal best while also posting a 9.97 in the 3x3x3 Cube, an improvement of 40.7 percent. Joseph Chen lowered his 2x2x2 Cube best to 3.77, a 48.1 percent drop, alongside a 16.28 personal best on the traditional Rubik's Cube. Nate Leitch tackled four events, achieving a career-best 29th place in the 4x4x4 Cube with a first-ever official attempt of 54.87 seconds, while cutting 47.3 percent off his Clock mark to log 9.65.

That same drive was evident throughout the roster across the single-day WCA competition. Aldrich Ang contested four events, earning a 5th-place finish in the 4x4x4 Cube with a 38.77 personal best, improving his 2x2x2 Cube mark to 1.88, and posting his first official Clock attempt of 11.58. Gareth Mao took large strides by dropping his 2x2x2 Cube best by 45.8 percent to 4.04 and his 3x3x3 Cube best by 42.2 percent to 18.36. Levi Hastie entered three events, recording his first 4x4x4 Cube attempt at 1:28.86 and trimming 42.4 percent off his 2x2x2 Cube best down to 3.84. Aariv Mallhotra made his official speed cubing debut, tackling four events and recording first-ever attempts of 58.60 in the 3x3x3 Cube, 14.57 in the 2x2x2 Cube, and 19.66 in Clock.

Across the entire day, Australian representatives secured all 12 available podium positions across the four contested events. The rapid schedules across multiple rounds tested endurance and puzzle versatility, demanding steady focus from every competitor who sat down at the timing stations.

The Big Cube Melbourne 2024 demonstrated how tightly contested modern tournaments have become, where triple-digit fields make every qualification cutoff a major hurdle. With new benchmarks established across all events, the Melbourne speedcubing community sets its sights on the next season of regional competition.