BAUTISTA, PEREDA ARE GUAM’S STRONGEST

By Patrick Lujan

Guam has a brand new Strongest Man and a Strongest Woman who won’t give up her title.

Newcomer Elton Bautista wowed the Sunday afternoon crowd by winning four of the six events at GSPN’s 2022 I Mas Metgot Competition at the Paseo Grounds, taking the title as Guam’s Strongest Man.

Brittney Pereda made it two straight titles as she, too, won four of the six events to easily cruise to another title as Guam’s Strongest Woman.

Mother Nature delivered a picturesque day and the strong athletes performed to an appreciative and supportive crowd. Here’s a recap of each event.

Pacific Unlimited Outrigger Lift

Each athlete had two minutes to lift the ‘Saina’ as many times as they could. Two Guam Health City members sat aboard the outrigger for added weight and challenge.

April Flores, being the youngest out of all the competitors, got things going with seven good lifts. Crossfitter and first time participant Miara Leon Guerrero struggled to find her groove before eventually getting in three lifts. Fellow newcomer Jacinta Sumagaysay and her weightlifting background easily pulled off 18 lifts, but Pereda finished off strong with 21.

Brittney Pereda 21 lifts

Jacinta Sumagaysay 18 lifts

April Flores 7 lifts

Miara Leon Guerrero 3 lifts

One more person was added on to increase the weight. Returnee Tim Nauta kicked things off for the men’s competition with 36 good lifts. MMA fighter/Gym Owner/Crossfitter/BJJer J.J. Ambrose quickly got his first taste of strongman stuff with 23 lifts. Bautista had a respectable 44 lifts in his first event. Astumbo Elementary teacher Ariel Delos Reyes ripped out 51 lifts to take the event, while 2021 champion Anthony ‘Big Ton’ Salas took third with 41.

Ariel Delos Reyes 51 lifts

Elton Bautista 44 lifts

Anthony Salas 41 lifts

Tim Nauta 36 lifts

J.J. Ambrose 23 lifts

Pacific Tyre/CTD Tire Flip

The men’s tire (1800/25) at more than 900-lbs. made for the port crane went undefeated as all five men were unable to lift the ginormous tire. Event officials chose to have the men use the 400-lb. + tire as well as the women and this is how it finished.

Women

Brittney Pereda 34.47 sec

Miara Leon Guerrero 38.03 sec

April Flores 46.53 sec

Jacinta Sumagaysay 47.75 sec

Men

Elton Bautista 25.91 sec

Anthony Salas 27.57 sec

Ariel Delos Reyes 31.62 sec

J.J. Ambrose 36.16 sec

Tim Nauta 41.12 sec

IT&E Proa Pull

The small sakman named ‘Geftao’ was the featured attraction within the channel of Agana Boat Basin. Men from Lamotrek, a coral atoll of three islands in the central Caroline Islands, navigated the sakman back and forth after each competitor pulled in over 100 feet of line. The canoe was submerged halfway for the women while the men had to pull in a fully submerged vessel.

Women

Brittney Pereda 1:30.66

Jacinta Sumagaysay 1:40.78

Miara Leon Guerrero 1:42.72

April Flores 2:03.69

Men

Elton Bautista 1:08.51

J.J. Ambrose 1:18.31

Anthony Salas 1:20.60

Ariel Delos Reyes 1:23.40

Tim Nauta 1:47.50

Michelob Ultra Keg Toss

The Keg Toss was the only event that didn’t involve the clock. The women tossed a 45-lb. keg while the men tossed a 65-lber. Each competitor had three attempts with their best toss being the throw of record. Here are the results:

Women

April Flores 13′ 6″

Jacinta Sumagaysay 10′ 10″

Brittney Pereda 9′ 9″

Miara Leon Guerrero 9′ 1″

Men

Ariel Delos Reyes 17′ 9″

Anthony Salas 16′ 9″

Elton Bautista 16′ 0″

J.J. Ambrose 15′ 0″

Tim Nauta 14′ 7″

Paradise Fitness Tombstone Carry

Heading into the fifth event, conditioning was a factor as fatigue started to set in. The women carried a cylinder weighing 133 lbs. while the men carried a larger cylinder with added weight inside for a total of 175 lbs. Leon Guerrero shocked the competition as the only female to complete the entire 300-foot walk, not event taking a break at the designated reset location.

Bautista was also the lone male to complete the course as all others dropped it along the way. The event win for Bautista put him in prime position of the overall title to that point.

Women

Miara Leon Guerrero 59.06 sec (completed)

April Flores 150 ft.

Brittney Pereda 140 ft.

Jacinta Sumagaysay 4 ft.

Men

Elton Bautista 1 min, 6 sec (completed)

Ariel Delos Reyes 237 ft.

J.J. Ambrose 225 ft.

Anthony Salas 220 ft.

Tim Nauta 80 ft.

Triple J Truck Pull

The final event had the competitors pull Ford trucks 300 feet along the Boat Basin side road. The women pulled a brand new F150 while the men pulled a heavy duty F250. It was fitting that the two champions completed the competition by taking the final event.

Women

Brittney Pereda :56.82

Jacinta Sumagaysay 1:00.87

Miara Leon Guerrero 1:06.44

April Flores 1:11.50

Men

Elton Bautista 1:02.09

Ariel Delos Reyes 1:05.69

J.J. Ambrose 1:07.68

Anthony Salas 1:09.10

Tim Nauta 1:11.56

FINAL RESULTS

Women

Brittney Pereda 31 pts

Miara Leon Guerrero 14 pts

April Flores 14 pts

Jacinta Sumagaysay 14 pts

Men

Elton Bautista 31 pts

Ariel Delos Reyes 25 pts

Anthony Salas 18 pts

J.J. Ambrose 15 pts

Tim Nauta 7 pts