ACTING Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte said he could not be part of the “charity boxing match” on Sunday against Philippine National Police Chief General Nicolas Torre III as he had other matters to attend to.
“Tuesday, Wednesday or any other day, kaya I think mas okay para sayo kasi may oras ka pa para mag-ensayo kasi medyo yung pagsuntok mo, pag-jab mo, nakababa agad yung kamay mo, kailangan nakadepensa yun sa mukha mo. Pag-jab mo, balik kaagad sa mukha ha. So konting advice lang, mag-ensayo ka,” he said in his Basta Dabawenyo Podcast aired on Saturday, July 26, 2025.
(Tuesday, Wednesday, or any other day, so I think it’s better for you because you’ll still have time to train. It’s just that when you punch, when you jab, you drop your hands right away. It should be kept in a defensive position, near your face. When you jab, bring it back to your face immediately, okay? Just a bit of advice: keep training.)
He said the match should not be scheduled on a Sunday and criticized Torre for setting a date without consulting him.
Duterte further accused Torre of using the match to divert public attention from pressing national issues. He claimed Torre had successfully created a “smokescreen” to distract the Filipinos from the recent visit of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to the United States, which resulted in a one-percent tariff reduction on Philippine exports to the U.S., as well as the widespread flooding in Luzon.
While he acknowledged Torre's preparation for the match, Duterte questioned why the Luzon floods were being brought into the conversation. He added that the fight could be held privately, without media coverage or cameras.
Duterte then presented two options: either he would personally confront Torre and fight him without gloves, or President Marcos should require all elected officials to undergo hair follicle drug testing. He said that since Torre had set his own conditions, he would also set his.
He later clarified that he did not officially challenge Torre to a fistfight, but that he simply stated that if a fight were to happen, he would definitely beat him.
Duterte had earlier accused Torre of being bold only because of his position, calling him a “coward” and claiming he could take him in a real fight.
Torre responded on July 23, three days later, suggesting that the fight be turned into a charity boxing match at the Araneta Coliseum.
At the “charity boxing match” supposedly held on July 27 at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum, Torre was declared the winner by default after Duterte failed to show up.
The tension between Duterte and Torre stems from the latter’s past actions. As CIDG chief, Torre oversaw the arrest of Duterte’s father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, in March this year. He also led the arrest of Pastor Apollo Quiboloy while serving as regional police director in Davao.
Duterte has previously claimed that Torre’s promotion to PNP chief was undeserved and not based on merit.
Meanwhile, the charity boxing match has reportedly accumulated over P16 million in cash donations.
In an interview at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum on Sunday, July 27, 2025, Torre said there were also P4.2 million worth of in-kind donations, which include sacks of rice, canned goods, and other basic commodities.
He said P340,000 were generated from the tickets sold at the venue.
Torre said the Philippine National Police (PNP) will turn over the donations to the Department of Social Welfare and Development, as well as the Philippine Red Cross for distribution to the families affected by the recent calamities that struck the country.
In one of the episodes of his podcast, Duterte challenged Torre to a fistfight as he expressed displeasure to the top cop who led the arrest of his father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, and his transfer to The Hague, Netherlands where he was turned over to the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Torre accepted the challenge in the form of boxing match for the benefit of the victims of the calamities.
In response, the younger Duterte said he would agree to a fistfight with Torre only if he can convince President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to order all elected officials to undergo a hair follicle drug test.
The PNP organized the event, but the younger Duterte was a no-show.
Duterte reportedly left the country for Singapore on Friday, July 25.
Torre was declared winner by default.
Among those who arrived to watch the supposed match were Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla, National Police Commission (Napolcom) vice chariman and executive officer Raphael Calinisan, and some top officials of the PNP.
There were four undercard fights; all of the boxers came from the PNP boxing team, before the main event.
“If you want, I’ll come to you, no cameras. Let’s fight, no gloves. Why do you need anything? Are you serious about showbiz? So if you really want it, it’s just the two of (us). Either I’ll come to you, just the two of us, just bring your bodyguard with you so that if something happens to you, at least someone will be there to pick you through the hospital,” Baste said.
Upon his arrival at the venue on Sunday, Torre responded to Baste’s demand for a private boxing match.
“Walang camera? Confidential? Mukhang sanay na sanay naman sa confidential ano? Ano yan? Confidential ang peg? Eh wag na para hindi naman yata maijustify yan under current regulations, so baka maimbestigahan pa ko at ako ay magtago naman pag ginawa kong confidential yan,” he said.
(No camera? Confidential? You seem very used to doing things confidentially, huh? What's this -- going for the "confidential" angle? Better not, because that might not be justifiable under current regulations. I might even get investigated, and I’d have to go into hiding if I make that confidential.)
Torre said they pushed through with the event for the sake of the victims who need immediate assistance following the onslaught of typhoons and habagat.
He said he will no longer entertain should Baste issue another challenge.
“Wala nga dahil nasabi na natin ang lahat eh. So this is the only one and only chance na palagay ko ay papansinin pa natin siya. After that, wala na siya. Marami akong ibang trabaho and he is really not worth responding to,” said Torre.
(There’s nothing more because we’ve already said everything. So this is the one and only chance, I think, that we’ll even bother to acknowledge him. After this, he’s done. I have a lot of other work to do, and he’s really not worth responding to.)
“Napakarami naman kundisyon. Hindi ganun kapag ikaw ang nag-challenge. Kahit na ano pa man, kahit bata nga eh alam yan. Kapag nag-challenge ka, dapat panindigan mo na ang challenge mo. Kapag hindi mo kayang panindigan tigil na lang,” he added.
(There are just too many conditions. That’s not how it works when you’re the one who issued the challenge. Anyone would know that -- even kids. When you throw a challenge, you should stand by it. If you can’t, then just stop.) RGP with Sunnex
