MANILA, Philippines – He went through an all-star 16-person tournament. Then he went through a highly-emotional ride to make history once again.

Robin Sane, the resident high-flyer of Manila Wrestling Federation (MWF), silenced motormouth Fabio Makisig to become the first-ever MWF Champion at MWF 6: Noche Buena on Saturday, December 1, at the University of the Philippines (UP) Bahay ng Alumni.

A Phoenix Splash sealed the deal for Sane in the main event featuring two of MWF’s best wrestlers.

Leading up to Noche Buena – MWF’s Christmas treat and its last show for 2018 – the highly-anticipated tournament final suddenly took a despicable turn when Makisig brought up private, sensitive details of Sane’s personal life. 

In a video uploaded on Facebook, Makisig exposed Sane’s secrets and blasted the “goody-two-shoes” facade of Sane, who once earned the MWF History Maker medal.

Sane owned up to his shortcomings at a separate sit-down interview, but the malicious scheme only fired up the “daredevil” wrestler.

In the end, Sane’s will to win overcame Makisig’s devious ploys to cement his place in Philippine wrestling history. 

Clipped wings, huge wins

Before the inaugural MWF Champion got crowned at Noche Buena, the first title challenger was already waiting in the wings.

“Danger” Rex Lawin fended off Frankie Thurteen, Morgan Vaughn, and Brother Jomar Liwanag in a four-way match to become the No. 1 contender to the MWF Title. Then, in a surprise twist, Vaughn and Thurteen teamed up to clip Lawin’s wings before he even got to face the MWF champion.

Later, in an inter-promotional match, Mr. Lucha defeated the franchise player of Philippine Wrestling Revolution (PWR) “The Senyorito” Jake de Leon in a wild grudge match.

Elsewhere, Khayl Sison cheated his way to victory in an open challenge, which was answered by PWR’s luchador SANDATA. Meanwhile, Ashura teamed up with Martivo of PWR to beat Hanzello Shilva and Ninja Ryujin.

UP’s very own RG had a bizarre stint as a “zombie” until a loss against his mentor Gigz Stryker brought him “back to life.” Brother Jomar and Jorelle Liwanag then snuck up behind the duo to unleash an attack.

A masked female wrestler named Luchadonna also made her debut at the pre-show in a winning effort. – with reports from local wrestling website Smark Henry/Rappler.com