MANILA, 24 October 2003 — Francisco “Django” Bustamante stayed on track for the money list title despite a stunning loss to compatriot Efren “Bata” Reyes in the recent World Classic Billiards tournament in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates.

Bustamante has placed second twice this year, losing to German pool ace Ralf Souquet in the BCA Open 9-Ball Championship and in Fujairah, where he absorbed a humbling 4-13 loss to Reyes.

But three victories — the 17th and 18th legs of the Joss Tour in Rhode Island and Connecticut and the International Challenge of Champions in August — boosted Bustamante’s winnings to $92,075.

His worst finish in 14 tournaments was 17th, in the Las Vegas Open also last August.

Bustamante placed third in the season finale of the Joss Tour and may find it tough surpassing his $122,800 earnings that was good enough for second last year.

The AZ Billiards player of the year has yet to finalize his playing schedule for the season, but is well ahead of his rivals, including last year’s top money earner Reyes.

Reyes, who topped the chart last year with $126,200, was No. 4 in the recent list by AZ Billiards, with earnings of $65,550 in 10 events aside from the $12,000 take home he got in Fujairah event.

The 49-year-old, known in the world pool circuit as “The Magician,” also won the Mid-Atlantic 9-Ball Championship in Virginia last January, the Manila leg of the Asian Tour in June and the Las Vegas Open.

The former world pool champion flashed his deadly form anew in Fujairah, ruling the tournament that featured 32 of the world’s best players, but remained behind two lesser-known pool artists in the recent money list.

Well-traveled Fil-Canadian Alex Pagulayan has seen action in 20 events and has earned $75,013 with six tour wins while world pool champion German Thorstenn Hohmann, who last year banked a measly $13,000, was running third with $69,000, boosted mainly by his $65,000 performance in Cardiff.

Aguilar Closes In on AP Supercross Crown

Caltex Revtex stalwart Glenn Aguilar zeroed in on the FIM Asia Pacific Supercross Championship following a courageous ride that left his closest rival in Indonesia’s Aep Dadang scrambling in his dusty wake.

Aguilar placed second in the first race behind Japan’s Tadakazu Ohtsuka before landing in third in Race No. 2 to cushion his lead over closest pursuer Dadang in the overall 125cc standings of the event also known as the FIM Asia MX Championship’s Round 5, held in Macau recently.

Aguilar now has a total of 101 points to Dadang’s 77 in the race for Asia’s most prestigious motocross title.

The Revtex team captain formally shoots for the Asia-Pacific championship in Guam next month.

RFM Returns to PBL Via Santo Tomas Tigers

For the love of the league it helped establish and nurture to become the country’s premier amateur basketball league, RFM Corp. will rejoin the Philippine Basketball League starting with the season-ending 2003 Platinum Cup.

“The PBL’s new approach of tapping school-based teams opens the door for us to rejoin the league which we were a founding member,” said RFM president and chief operating officer Joey Conception. “The PBL’s program is more or less parallel with our own objective.”

Inspired by the title conquest of the FEU Tamaraws in the UAAP Finals, RFM has agreed to sponsor the participation of the UST Tigers in the Platinum Cup.

FG Foundation Pays for NCFP’s FIDE Dues

The First Gentleman’s Foundation saved the day again for Philippine chess as it will shoulder the membership dues left unpaid by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) to the World Chess Federation (or Federacion International Des Echecs).

“We already have now the money, we just need to convert the pesos into Swiss currency. If all goes well, maybe by the close of this day (Friday) ma-reremit na namin to FIDE,” NCFP Secretary General Sammy Estimo said.

Just as soon as the payment gets remitted and is confirmed by the FIDE Secretariat, the NCFP, headed by its president Mat Defensor can look forward to having the organization’s name removed from the list of delinquent member-federations and eventually have the international rating (Elo) of the Filipino chessers put back on board. FGF-Sports Project Coordinator Emy Andrada said a check worth 532,000 pesos was released to the NCFP early this week.

Taekwondo Team Bag 5 Gold Medals

Sydney Olympian Donald Geisler shone brightest as the Petron Philippine Taekwondo Team won 13 medals, including five golds, in the recent Korea Open Championships in Chunchon, South Korea.

Trailing 1-3 after two rounds, Geisler unleashed a smashing 7-point comeback inthe last stanza to whip Australian Manir Unalan, 8-4, in the lightweight finals and produce one of the five Filipino gold medals in the 43-country invitational tournament.

Four of Geisler’s points came from two head kicks, which brought down the Aussie. He toppled another Aussie, Hamza Jabran, 12-7, and South Korean Jung Ju Oh, 6-3, in his earlier fights.

The other Filipino gold medalist were flyweight Tshomlee Go, welterweight Alexander Briones, heavyweight Dax Morfe and bantamweight Kalindi Tamayo.

Bantamweight Manuel Rivero Jr., finweight Kathleen Alora, featherweight Antoinette Rivero, middleweight Margarita Bonifacio and heavyweight Ann Margaret Boyle accounted for six silvers while lightweight Veronica Domingo and middleweight Dindo Simpao got a bronze each to complete the Petron RP squad’s remarkable 13-medal production — good for second overall.

Bikers Invade RP Roads Before Tour

After Pangasinan, races will be scheduled in Tarlac, a first-ever bicycle race around Metro Manila’s perimeter, Tagaytay and another unprecedented in Puerto Princesa for the pre-2004 Tour Pilipinas.

The Tour of Tarlac, a component of the pre-2004 Tour season presented by Air21 headed by Bert Lina, will be ran Oct. 26.

Barely two weeks after that would be the Tour of Metro Manila on Nov. 9, a first-ever bicycle race that would circle the National Capital Region on a course that starts and finishes in Marikina City.

Disabled Pinoy Cagers Finish 2nd

The Philippine team won three of its four assignments to finish second in the recent 1st ASEAN Wheelchair Basketball Championship at the Jurong East Sports Hall in Singapore.

Playing with only nine men, the Philippine Sports Association for Differently Abled team romped past Singapore 48-35, Malaysia 65-33 and Cambodia 71-40 after dropping its opening game to eventual champion Thailand 58-65.