Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Nicolas Torre III will appear at Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Manila at 9 a.m. on Sunday, July 27, for a charity boxing match in response to a challenge issued by acting Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte.
Torre began boxing practice after attending a disaster response meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at Camp Aguinaldo.
Now the question is, will Baste show up too?
“It’s all up to him… It will be at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum. A (boxing) ring is already being set up there. There are already sponsors who committed to giving ayuda (relief goods) to those affected by the typhoon,” said Torre after his boxing practice at the PNP gym on Thursday, July 24.
Torre emphasized that the event will proceed — with or without Duterte.
“Anytime, I am ready. Now if he’s not there, we will just continue with our activity of giving ayuda to our kababayan,” he said.
Duterte has yet to confirm attendance. He previously challenged Torre to a fistfight during a podcast, calling him “a nobody” outside his official post.
In 2024, Duterte also threatened to slap Torre over the mass relief of police commanders in Davao City.
Torre, 54, admitted his stamina isn’t what it used to be but said the match is about fundraising and showing up for the public.
“I made some refresher on what I used to do,” he said.
Sources said one of Torre’s favorite sports back in PNP Academy days was boxing. But Torre did not confirm this, joking instead about his time as a cadet at the PNPA.
“I am ready. When I was still a plebe at the PNPA, I experienced being punched while my hands tied behind my back. So I am just thinking about it as part of the preparation,” said Torre.
“There was a challenge made and I just saw this as an opportunity to raise funds and help our kababayan,” he stressed.
On Thursday, Sen. Ronald dela Rosa posted a video of Duterte doing boxing training on his Facebook page. The video quickly went viral, though it’s unclear if the training occurred after Torre accepted the challenge. (Aaron Recuenco)
