Wojciech Szewczyk Reclaims 10-Ball World Title: An Undefeated 7-0 Run in Ho Chi Minh City

On the evening of September 26, 2026, at Phu Tho Indoor Stadium in Ho Chi Minh City, Wojciech Szewczyk claimed the Iwan Simonis WPA Men’s 10-Ball World Championship after defeating Eldi Kaçi 3-1 in the final. He finished the event with a perfect 7-0 record, earning 80,000 USD from a 300,000 USD prize fund. The title is his second WPA 10-Ball world crown, following his first in 2026. The 2026 edition featured 96 players. The preliminary stage used a double-elimination format, meaning a player was not eliminated until suffering two losses. This structure reduces the influence of a single bad match. The knockout rounds followed, and the final ended 3-1. The meaning of a 7-0 run in 10-ball is different from one in 9-ball. Ten-ball is played under call-shot rules: a player must nominate the ball and the pocket before shooting. Lucky pots are not accepted. The balls are racked tighter and the layout is more demanding, so skill and safety play matter more than the luck of the break. Winning seven straight matches under those conditions is a strong technical signal. According to AzBilliards.com, Szewczyk beat Kaçi 2-0 in the group stage and again 3-1 in the final. His knockout path went through Oliver Szolnoki, Johann Chua, Francisco Sánchez Ruiz, Sanjin Pehlivanovic and Eldi Kaçi. That is not a soft draw. It is a genuine international gauntlet, and beating the same elite opponent twice in one tournament shows tactical control and adaptability. Joshua Filler was also listed among the notable performers, although the source did not give his exact placing. The presence of Filler confirms the quality of the field. Szewczyk did not merely win; he won at the right moments against the most difficult opponents. Based on my experience tracking cue sports matches, the final win over Kaçi reflected better positional play. In ten-ball, after the break, the balls are packed tighter and each shot requires more choices. Szewczyk did not need spectacular strokes. He forced Kaçi into difficult safety situations and waited for errors. The four-year gap between Szewczyk’s titles leaves room for two readings. He may be a peak-form player who saves his best for the biggest events. Or he may have faced motivation and fitness issues after 2026. The AzBilliards report does not provide enough data to decide between those options. What is clear is that a second world title moves him from the category of one-time champion to multiple world champion. Ten-ball’s power map is increasingly multi-polar. Poland, Albania, Germany, Spain, Bosnia, Hungary and the Philippines all had contenders in this event. No single nation dominates the way England or China does in snooker. That makes every world title harder to predict and increases the value of consistency, which Szewczyk has just shown. Hosting the championship in Ho Chi Minh City and moving to Bali for the next leg confirms that the Predator Pro Billiard Series is committed to Southeast Asia. The region offers lower hosting costs, growing playing numbers and rising audience interest. Placing a world title in Vietnam is not only a media move; it is a long-term investment in a new market. The prize structure deserves scrutiny. The champion took 80,000 USD, about 26.7 percent of the 300,000 USD total. With 96 players, travel and accommodation costs are significant. Early exits are unlikely to cover expenses. A prize pool that remains so top-heavy creates a long-term sustainability problem for mid-tier players, and mid-tier players are exactly the source of future champions. Still, I will not rush to declare the start of a Szewczyk dynasty. Seven wins in one tournament is important evidence, but the sample is small. A player can win seven matches in one week and then struggle in the next event, especially when schedule pressure and title-defense expectations increase. The original report also lacks stroke-level data: break efficiency, run-out percentage, successful safety rate and shot-clock behavior. Without those numbers, analysis can only say Szewczyk played effectively. It cannot identify what he changed technically or where exactly his edge lies. The information currently rests largely on a single source. Verification against WPA official results is needed before these figures are used as the basis for long-term conclusions. This is not suspicion about accuracy; it is the discipline of checking data before making claims. The second world title also matters commercially. Szewczyk now fits the profile for long-term equipment sponsorship deals from brands such as Iwan Simonis, Aramith, Kamui and Predator. That helps him financially and gives sponsors a coherent story for the Asian market. Kaçi reached the final, but losing twice to the same man in one tournament exposed his vulnerability in high-pressure positional play. Other opponents will study that weakness. If Kaçi wants to overtake Szewczyk, he will need a stronger safety game. The next test arrives in Bali. If Szewczyk enters and advances deep, the narrative will shift from champion returning to champion in a stable cycle. If he is absent or goes out early, the 2026 crown will look like a sharp peak on an uneven curve. In pool, every statement must be verified by actual shots. The next shots will be played in Bali.