Hayden Wilde put down a huge marker for the T100 season with the biggest winning margin yet seen in a men’s T100 race as he bossed the opening race in Singapore last weekend.
He was just seconds off the front after the swim and from the moment he took the lead early on the bike he was never threatened.
The Kiwi supertstar crossed the line more than six minutes clear of runner-up Sam Dickinson, with Mika Noodt third.
It meant he repeated last year’s win in Singapore and made it seven victories out of eight in the format since then.
‘A happy swim’
Afterwards he said: “I think it was harder this year than last year – and I just made sure I just raced my race out there today.
“I was really, really happy. Started off with a happy swim.
“But halfway through the ride, my power meter disconnected from my Garmin, so I had no data. I just had my heart rate. So it was really hard to figure out what I was doing, and then it finally connected and I was able to continue and just put my head down.
“It was definitely hotter than last year on the bike. My heart rate was well higher and my power was way lower and I just made sure I was keeping it consistent and I was making good ground and got onto the run and half of the run was really, really hot, and then we finally got some cloud cover and yeah, just put, put my head down and made sure I was getting fuel in and getting water in and getting ice and just keep, kept on chugging.”
“I think the biggest thing for me out of here is the confidence out of the water. Last year [in Singapore] I was a minute back. We had more or less the same sort of swimmers up front but it felt really comfortable.”
On securing $50,000 USD for the victory, he added: “Gotta pay for weddings somehow!”
‘A big learning curve’
Dickinson in second was notching his best T100 result to date but was under no illusions about catching Wilde: “No, no. Hayden was winning every day and twice on Sunday.”
There had been lots of talk beforehand about a showdown between the T100 champion in Wilde and his equivalent in the WTCS – Aussie Matt Hauser, who was making his debut in this format.
Hauser was in the top six throughout but never a threat to Wilde and he said: “It was a big learning curve. I think it was nice to be a student of the sport again. I was humbled out there, and that’s really what I wanted out there today.
“I wanted to kick my season off with a lower pressure race, to find out the inner demons and get ready for a hard 2026 because, you know, there’s a target on my back, as I said before, and it’s gonna be harder than ever this year. So it was nice to get my ass kicked today out there.”
He was being modest – fifth was a solid result and Vasco Vilaca, the man he beat on numerous occasions in WTCS racing last year, finally notched his first win at that level the same day in Samarkand.
Hauser heads to the next WTCS race in Yokohama on 16 May where he will take on Olympic champion Alex Yee among others. Wilde had also originally been on that start list but isn’t any more.
