Timofei Tarasenko has joined one of speedcubing's smallest clubs. At the Paradise Place Thailand Cube Open 2026 in Bangkok, he broke one minute in 6x6 not once but twice across the weekend, capping it with a 59.51 European record in the final. Before this week, only Max Park had ever done it, and only three times.

Under a minute, twice in one weekend

In the opening round, Tarasenko posted 59.93 for a European record single — already a sub-minute solve. He then went faster in the final with 59.51, becoming the second person in history to break one minute in 6x6, an event where the extra layers mean heavier turns and harder lookahead than on a standard cube. That makes his 59.51 the fourth sub-minute 6x6 single ever recorded, with all four now split between him and Park.

The result lands a week after Tymon Kolasiński reset the 7x7 world record to 1:32.69, another European record that pushed him to world No. 2 in the event. Between the two of them, the big-cube scene is moving faster than it has in years.

WCA mandates a fourth timer pad

The World Cube Association announced that from January 2, 2027, every official attempt using a speedsolving timer must run in 4-pad mode on a Speed Stacks G5 StackMat Pro Timer, replacing the standard 2-pad setup. The change targets "sliding" — where a competitor's hand brushes across the timer's pads on the way to starting the solve, potentially shaving fractions of a second off the reaction time a stopped hand would need. Existing records stand until broken under 4-pad mode, and 4-pad results will be ranked alongside 2-pad ones rather than starting a separate ranking. The decision closes out weeks of community argument over what counts as a clean start.

A two-year reign ends in Birmingham

At the Kewbz UK Championship 2026, Nicholas Archer won the 3x3 title with a 6.34 average, ending James Alonso's two-year hold on the UK Championship. Archer doubled up, also taking 3x3 One-Handed at 8.64 — solving with a single hand while keeping the average nearly as sharp as his two-handed result.

Big-cube honors at the same event went entirely to Ciarán Beahan, who swept 4x4 through 7x7: 22.10, 41.33, 1:13.11, and 1:48.99 respectively. Consistency across four different big cubes in one weekend is rare — each event demands its own muscle memory for size and turning style.

Henry Lichner breaks 40 seconds in 5x5

At the 4x4 Off US-40 IL 2026 in Casey, Illinois, Henry Lichner averaged 39.43 in 5x5, becoming the 10th person ever to average under 40 seconds in the event and only the second American to do it, after Max Park. His set included a 31.98 single — the world's seventh-fastest 5x5 solve, and the second-fastest ever by an American behind Park's 31.54.

Quick hits

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