Cr Whiley said he decided to go it alone after supporters told him they would prefer to be able to vote for him as mayor.
"I wasn't sure what sort of support I had out there and it's actually exceeded my expectations,'' Cr Whiley said.
He said there had been no split between the two councillors and they got on "quite well'' despite having different opinions on some issues.
He did not think it would be easy to unseat Mayor Dave Cull.
"It's also going to be tough to unseat an incumbent mayor that really hasn't done a lot wrong.''
In a press release he said his focus would be on increasing jobs and improving the city's reputation as a great place to "live, work, study, visit and play''.
Cr Whiley believed that the council had lost touch with the majority of ratepayers and as mayor he would focus on "prudent spending, investing in city infrastructure, and most importantly, making decisions based on facts and not on personal ideology''.
Cr Whiley joins a mayoral race which so far includes Mr Cull and Crs Aaron Hawkins and Lee Vandervis.
Cr Calvert said yesterday she was still undecided on whether she would stand for mayor or council.
She declined to comment on Cr Whiley dropping plans to support her as a mayoral candidate.
