For a long time, it was believed that 17:17 for Mushroom Cup, Flower Cup and Star Cup was the perfect time for their Any% categories, whether one was on Normal or Hard difficulty. However, a subtle, yet critical little detail was found that changed speedrunning for Mushroom Cup Any% (Normal) forever.

Once you click "Tourney" on the Main Menu Screen, you are then brought to the Cup Selection Menu where one must select a cup on whichever difficulty they want to run in order to then get to the Character Selection Menu to then start the game. A 17:15 time was accomplished for the first time in the game's speedrunning history on Tuesday, August 22nd, 2017 when I realized that the default cup to play is Mushroom Cup, which is already selected on Normal difficulty. So by realizing this, I was able to save time by not selecting the cup itself and immediately clicking "Go!" on the first frame it appeared. In doing so, after selecting my three characters at a great pace, I was able to achieve a time faster than what I imagined to be possible. I thought a 17:16 was impossible. Bare in mind that this strategy only applies exclusively to Mushroom Cup Any% (Normal). 17:17 is still the perfect time for Mushroom Cup Any% (Hard), Flower Cup Any% (Normal and Hard) and Star Cup Any% (Normal and Hard). Cheers to cracking theories and making them a reality!

Sincerly, Hoopla Fish