To solve for \( t \) in the equation \( t - 1.25 = 4.29 \), we can add 1.25 to both sides of the equation:
\[ t - 1.25 + 1.25 = 4.29 + 1.25 \] \[ t = 4.29 + 1.25 \] \[ t = 5.54 \]
Now that we have found \( t \), we can fill in the blanks in the statement:
"At the swim meet, Matthew’s new time [5.54] of [1.25] is seconds better than his previous time, t."
Therefore, the completed statement is:
"At the swim meet, Matthew’s new time 5.54 of 1.25 is seconds better than his previous time, t."