IT WAS a somber day for the local crowd at the WNT Legends on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026, as both Filipino icons Efren “Bata” Reyes and Francisco “Django” Bustamante suffered defeats at the Gateway Mall 2 in Cubao, Quezon City.
Reyes bowed to American great Earl “The Pearl” Strickland, 6-11, while Bustamante suffered a heartbreaking 10-11 defeat to German star Ralf “The Kaiser” Souquet.
Bustamante seemed destined for an easy win after surging to a dominant 8-2 lead, but a series of costly errors allowed the German veteran to claw his way back into the match.
Even after Bustamante reached the hill at 10-7, Souquet defied the odds by winning three consecutive frames to forge a nerve-wracking 10-10 tie.
In the deciding rack, Souquet maintained his composure after the break to complete the 11-10 comeback.
Despite the loss, Bustamante still advanced to the finals by virtue of his superior rack count, finishing with 21 racks won compared to Reyes’ 17.
Under the tournament format, the highest-ranked Filipino meets the top foreign cue artist for the championship, while the lowest-placed Filipino faces the bottom-ranked foreigner for third place.
As a result, Bustamante will battle Strickland for the WNT Legends crown, while Reyes will take on Souquet in the playoff for third. / LBG