President Marcos Praises New Champion During SONA
MANILA, Philippines — In a surprising moment during his State of the Nation Address, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. highlighted the country’s newest champion, even though the boxing match never truly took place. The president gave Philippine National Police chief Gen. Nicolas Torre III a playful shout-out, dubbing him a champion despite never throwing a punch in the ring.
“Tulad ni Senator Manny Pacquiao, ni Hidilyn Diaz, ni Caloy Yulo, Ira Villegas, Nesthy Petecio, EJ Obiena, Alex Eala — isama na rin natin ‘yong bago nating kampyon, si PNP Chief Nic Torre,” Marcos said with a smile, drawing cheers and laughter from the audience at the Batasang Pambansa. A visibly surprised Torre stood up, prompting the president to joke, “Nagulat si Chief PNP.”
Walkover Win Brings Big Charity Funds
The unexpected champion status came after Torre was declared the winner by default in a charity boxing event called “Laban Para sa Nasalanta.” The bout, held at Rizal Memorial Coliseum, was scheduled for Sunday but ended abruptly when Torre’s opponent, acting Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte, failed to show up, having flown to Singapore days earlier.
Despite the anticlimactic finish, the event succeeded in raising over P20 million in cash and donations. Ticket sales contributed P300,000, and boxing legend Manny Pacquiao donated a championship belt to honor the occasion. Torre, 55, said the funds would be used to aid victims of recent typhoons and floods.
Drama Beyond the Ring
The charity match was born from a podcast feud. Duterte had challenged Torre to a fistfight after criticizing his appointment as PNP chief, especially concerning the arrest of Duterte’s father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, on an International Criminal Court warrant.
Torre accepted the challenge but proposed turning it into a formal boxing match for charity instead. After Duterte’s absence, Torre dismissed calls for a rematch, telling reporters, “I don’t think he’s worth responding to at this point. Let him stay in his own world.”
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