Foton, F2 figure in crucial PSL Grand Prix match

Games Saturday:

(Batangas City Sports Center)

4 p.m. – Petron vs Iriga City

6 p.m. – Foton vs F2 Logistics

MANILA, Philippines — Titans will clash as reigning champion Foton takes on undefeated F2 Logistics in the Chooks to Go-Philippine Superliga Grand Prix at the Batangas City Sports Center Saturday.

Action starts at 6 p.m. with the Tornadoes looking to come up with a morale-boosting win and a share of leadership.

Also seeing action is another heavyweight in Petron, which will battle Iriga City in the 4 p.m. appetizer.

The Cargo Movers remain on top of the team standings with an immaculate 6-0 win-loss card followed by Foton and Petron, who are just one game behind entering the final stretch of the single-round eliminations.

Finishing on top will be very crucial as the highest-ranking side will take on the eighth seeded team.

The second seed will clash with the seventh seed; the third seed will battle the sixth seed; and the fourth seed will face the fifth seed in the sudden-death quarterfinal encounter on December. 5.

The survivors in the quarters will move on to the semifinals to determine the protagonists in the best-of-three finals showdown.

F2 Logistics coach Ramil de Jesus admitted that while emerging on top of the eliminations is their ultimate goal, he knows the road will be tough, especially with the two-time champion Foton blocking their path.

“Playing Foton will be very tough,” said de Jesus, admitting that their early peak might be counter-productive to their title campaign.

“I’m quite worried because we’re always winning. I’m not saying that we want to lose, but losses will bring out the character of my team. We haven’t experienced that. So if we’re going to lose, I want it to happen early so we will have time to recover and make some adjustments right away.”

But with the way they are playing, the Cargo Movers appear invincible.

In their previous game against Cignal, the Cargo Movers jabbed their way around in the opening set before delivering the knockout blows in the second and third, thanks to their furious attacks, impressive blocking and airtight floor defense.

“As much as possible, we want to sustain this run. But we won’t be surprised if we lose any time soon,” said de Jesus, who is to bank on imports Kennedy Bryan and Maria Jose Perez as well as local stars Kim Fajardo, Aby Marano, Kim Dy and Majoy Baron anew.

Foton, for its part, is tipped to go all out not only to claim a handsome chance at stealing the top seed, but also to gain momentum over F2 Logistics if ever they will meet again in the crucial stretch -- probably in the semifinals or the finals.

“This game will be very crucial,” said Foton coach Moro Branislav, who was seen scouting the Cargo Movers in their match against the HD Spikers last Tuesday.

“F2 Logistics has yet to lose. We want to win this game because I believe that they are one of the biggest challenges in our goal of winning the title.”