XRP is at a critical point: The 173-day cycle repeats its historical pattern 📊

The cryptocurrency market has a memory, and in the case of XRP, that memory has just provided a clue that technical analysts cannot ignore. Currently, XRP is going through a phase that closely resembles the moments before its major historical expansion. Analyst “Bird” has identified that the token is trapped in a technical pattern called a “descending wedge,” the same formation that preceded explosive movements in the past.

Technical compression is revealing the next move 📉

The most notable feature is that, from the July 2025 peak until now, exactly 173 days have passed. This figure is no coincidence: during the previous major bullish move, XRP also took 173 days to break its all-time high after completing the same bearish structure. XRP is currently consolidating near $1.36, narrowing its trading range more and more.

This dynamic is similar to compressing a spring: the tighter the range, the more energy is stored for the upcoming move. Despite the selling pressure that has characterized the past few weeks, the price has not significantly ceded, keeping the technical structure supporting bullish expectations intact.

173 days: the pattern transforming market expectations ⏳

The current trading volume, around $192 million in 24 hours, is below the peaks of $1.8 billion seen in previous cycles. However, this does not invalidate the chart’s structure. For analysts like “Steph is Crypto,” the current scenario bears striking similarities to the pre-explosion period of 2017.

If the technical pattern unfolds as in previous cycles, the first target on traders’ radar is between $4 and $4.5, representing a potential move of over 113% from current levels. But there is a more aggressive scenario: if the market repeats the behavior of 2017, XRP could project toward significantly higher levels, potentially surpassing $22.

Breakout to $4.50 or explosion to $22? The scenarios at play 🚀

The question occupying traders is whether we are in the final accumulation phase before XRP permanently leaves its current price levels, or if the market is playing with our expectations. The truth is that XRP is positioned at a technical inflection point, where the chart’s geometry and the 173-day cycle are aligned in an extraordinary way.

Data suggests that the token is not sleeping but accumulating momentum amid apparent calm. The real test is near, and the market will soon reveal whether this 173-day cycle repetition is the prelude to significant changes in XRP’s price.