MANILA – Cebuanos June Mar Fajardo and Greg Slaughter renew their rivalry in the 2018 PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals.
The best-of-seven titular series between Fajardo’s San Miguel Beermen and Slaughter’s Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings starts Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
It will be their first time to face off in a championship series since their last finals encounter nine years ago when Slaughter was still with University of Visayas and Fajardo was playing for University of Cebu.
Already a six-time PBA champion in his seventh year in the league, Fajardo said he has long waited for this moment where he can avenge his loss to Slaughter in the 2009 CESAFI finals.
“Sana this time ako naman manalo,” Fajardo said.
“Nakakatuwa lang kasi parang hindi mo akalain na makarating kami dito, then ngayon nandito kami tapos nagkaharap ulit kami. Sobrang blessed kami na nandito kami sa sitwasyon na ito.
“For sure, ibibigay din ni Greg iyong best niya. Then ako, siyempre ako ibibigay ko din iyong best ko. Matutuwa iyong mga taga-Cebu kasi nga nagkaharap kami ni Greg ngayon, and then parang mare-reminisce nila iyong CESAFI days namin.”
For his part Slaughter said he is also thrilled to battle Fajardo again in a finals series – this time in the PBA – and is hoping to renew his dominance on his fellow Cebuano center.
“This is the first time we get to square off in the PBA Finals so it brings back good memories,” he said. “We were young then – 19-, 18-year-olds playing in the finals against each other. It’s exciting to do that again.”
“It’s a tough matchup and a huge obstacle to overcome but I’m not making it a personal matchup,” he added. “It’s a team matchup. At the end of the day, we’re both trying to win a championship.”/PN
