💸If only Ben Hamilton had a time machine. He’d call 2025 done and dusted now and laugh all the way to the bank.
The 26-year-old Aucklander has cashed in on his early season consistency to climb to the summit of the Ironman Pro Series points standings.
His 6th at 70.3 St George early Sunday (NZT) has seen the Kiwi soar from 10th to top of the pops with 7513 points, ahead of Aussie pro cyclist turned triathlete Cam Wurf (7304) and American Rudy Von Berg (6913).
If the season ended today, the world No. 56 would cash a cool $200,000 (NZ$337K) bonus.
“End of season now and payouts would be amazing… I’d be rich!” Hamilton joked with SBR-Tri.com.
Unfortunately, life doesn’t work like that. There’s a lot of racing to come before Ironman hands out the bonus cheques in their season long, global championship.
“Pretty cool to take the lead in the Ironman Pro Series… I’ve been busy and consistent, and I think I’ll hold it until [at least] the end of the week 🫣 A long season ahead!” he wrote on social media.
The good news is Hamilton doesn’t feel out of place, nor is he going to give up his lofty position without a fight.
“I did see it as a possibility [leading the series] since I decided to race such a busy schedule at the beginning of the year,” said Hamilton who has rattled off 7th, 10th and 12th places at Ironman NZ, 70.3 Geelong and IM Texas respectively in the lead-up to St George.
“However, the races are so stacked nowadays, and you have to execute. I have been consistent, and I think that’ll be key to the end of year rankings.
“There will be the top guys who have wins in Pro Series races, but they’re also taking away so many points from other athletes [so] that there will hopefully be some space in the top 10 for the consistent athletes.”
If Hamilton can remain in the top 10 come seasons end, he’ll bank at least a NZ$16,887 (for 10th) bonus. Fifth or better will bolster his bank account by at least $85k.
Next up for the Kiwi long-distance No. 5, who is set for another jump up the PTO world rankings when they’re refreshed overnight NZT, is Ironman Cairns on June 15.
It will be a critical race in what is shaping as a breakout year for Hamilton who has yet to qualify for the September 14 VinFast Ironman World Championships in Nice.
“It’s no secret I need my Nice slot and I’ll be chasing it in Cairns. That’s a fork in the road as to whether my series stays alive and I’m off to Nice, or I’m off in a different direction, which I currently have no picture of.
“If I can be successful in Cairns and earn a slot, I’ll head to Nice and 70.3 Worlds [in Marbella on November 9 which Hamilton qualified for with his win at 70.3 Sunshine Coast last September] to try replace a score for a better one to give myself the best chance for the IM Pro series.”
Canadian Lionel Sanders won 70.3 St George in 3:37:54 from Americans Sam Long (3:40:08) and Colin Szuch (3:44:04). Hamilton was 6th in 3:46:37 – 8min 43sec behind Sanders after swim, bike and run splits of 24:14, 2:03:11 and 1:16:03 respectively.
It earned Hamilton 1977 points in a system when every second from the winner’s time costs an athlete a point. Regular season Ironman races are worth a maximum 5000 points and 70.3 event like Sunday’s 2500.
“It was awesome to race on this course again, but damn it was tough!” Hamilton said after finishing runner-up in St George 12 months ago.
“My swim clicked and I was right where I wanted to be. Some savagely hard riding the first 20 mins to put myself towards the front of the race. I felt my legs towards the end of the bike but managed to come off in 7th and hold for 6th place on the run 🔥
“Overall, I’m happy with my race two weeks after Texas. I recovered well, sent it, and now we travel home after being on the road for 3 weeks ✈️.”
Fellow Kiwi Jayden Kuijpers was 36th in 4:11:51. Paula Findlay made it a Canadian double, winning the women’s race in 4:11:06 from Americans Danielle Lewis (4:14:12) and Jackie Hering (4:17:06).
