Wrightsville Beach Bash 2026

The tournament hall inside the Holiday Inn Resort Lumina on Wrightsville Beach by IHG buzzed with steady energy on January 11, 2026, as timers beeped and plastic clicked across rows of competition stations. Coastal air framed a busy single day of action where 78 competitors gathered to test their skills over nine rounds across five official events. Speedcubing fans and traveling families watched the tables closely as the day opened with high hopes and fast hands, setting the tone for an intense schedule of puzzle solving by the Atlantic shore.

The premier 3x3x3 Cube competition took center stage as the headline event, drawing the entire field of 78 entrants across three full rounds. Speed cubing in the 3x3 results reached a blazing peak in the finals, where Ashten Jampayas of the USA claimed the championship with an exceptional winning average of 6.60 seconds, bolstered by the weekend's best single of 5.27 seconds. Kerry Creech earned the runner-up spot with an average of 7.26 seconds, while Easan Peacock took third on the podium with a mark of 7.31 seconds in a tightly contested finish.

That classic Rubik's Cube triumph was just one part of a dominant performance across the board for Ashten Jampayas. At Wrightsville Beach Bash 2026, Jampayas demonstrated remarkable versatility by sweeping every multi-layered event on the schedule. In the 4x4x4 Cube, which drew 60 competitors over two rounds, Jampayas captured first place with an average of 28.09 seconds and a tournament-best single solve of 23.87 seconds, once again finishing ahead of second-place Kerry Creech at 30.28 seconds and third-place Easan Peacock at 31.19 seconds.

The 5x5x5 Cube proved to be another masterclass for Jampayas, who secured his third gold medal of the meet with a winning average of 53.22 seconds and a fast single of 45.72 seconds against a field of 46 competitors. Bhuvanesh Ganta finished in second place with an average of 56.98 seconds, while Kerry Creech completed his third podium appearance of the day by taking third place with a 58.28-second average. Every step on the podium across all disciplines at the tournament was claimed by competitors representing the USA.

Beyond the traditional cubes, the tournament offered fierce speed across specialized events. In the Skewb event, 60 solvers tackled two rounds of fast-paced turning where Jakub Zytka captured the victory with a 3.48-second winning average, which included a blazing single time of 1.45 seconds. Willem A. Schmidt followed in second place with an average of 3.77 seconds, and Nathan Smith secured third place with 4.49 seconds. The 3x3x3 Blindfolded discipline saw Orion Leavitt-Lytle win the title among 14 entrants with a best single solve of 55.53 seconds, leading Rue Clippinger in second at 1:02.85 and Krish Shah-Nathwani in third at 1:04.68.

Beyond the podium battles, Wrightsville Beach Bash 2026 delivered standout individual milestones throughout the competitor roster. Gavin Branch achieved huge leaps, taking on his first ever attempt at Skewb with an 11.54 mark while dropping his 4x4x4 Cube personal best by 53.5 percent to 1:49.22 and trimming his 3x3x3 Cube best by 45.7 percent to 14.68 seconds. Brandon Kane tackled five separate events, recording a first ever attempt at 3x3x3 Blindfolded in 4:53.13 for a 9th-place finish, alongside an improved 4.69 Skewb personal best that was 39.7 percent faster and a 1:42.07 5x5x5 Cube personal best. Daniel Garcia made his first ever attempts at Skewb in 5.02 seconds and 4x4x4 Cube in 1:25.93, while improving his 3x3x3 Cube best by 17.9 percent to 16.30 seconds.

Other solvers made massive strides in their respective events across the weekend. Maximilian Jack Greene logged a first ever attempt at 4x4x4 Cube of 2:27.40 and cut his 3x3x3 Cube personal best by 41.4 percent down to 31.15 seconds. Brooke Showalter recorded a first ever attempt at 4x4x4 Cube in 1:43.85, a Skewb personal best of 5.60 seconds that was 24.4 percent faster, and a 3x3x3 Cube best of 24.17 seconds. Clark Leffel took on four events, securing a 39th-place finish in 5x5x5 Cube with a first attempt of 2:32.68, while improving his 3x3x3 Cube mark by 16.3 percent to 12.06 seconds and his 4x4x4 Cube best to 1:06.65. Ryan Frankel logged a first ever attempt at Skewb in 17.33 seconds alongside personal bests of 12.31 in 3x3x3 Cube and 1:26.48 in 4x4x4 Cube, while Corey Ash notched a 5x5x5 Cube best of 2:21.10 that was 30.9 percent faster.

This edition of the cubing competition also welcomed new solvers into the community fold. Caleb Hedgepeth took part in his first WCA competition, tackling four events and recording first-ever official marks including a 44.58 in 4x4x4 Cube, 8.01 in Skewb, and 1:30.00 in 5x5x5 Cube to earn a 24th-place finish. Fellow debutants Canaan Cristofer Valles, Jacob Myrick Anderson, and Calvin Nilles also registered their opening official solves, adding fresh energy to the hall.

The single-day meet in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, USA demonstrated the deep talent across the region. Wrightsville Beach Bash 2026 successfully brought together seasoned champions and newcomers alike across an exciting schedule of nine rounds. As the competition concluded and gear was packed away, solvers departed with new personal marks and memories from an exceptional coastal contest.