Fajardo cements PBA dominance with record 6th BPC plum

MANILA, Philippines — As any dominant athlete would, June Mar Fajardo deflected the spotlight and diverted it to the ones who helped him get to what seems like a permanent stay at the summit.

On Wednesday night, no image could be more telling: staying true to his words from weeks ago, the 6-foot-11 behemoth from Cebu gestured for his teammates to join him in the traditional picture-taking as he raised with both his hands his sixth Best Player of the Conference (BPC) award before a mixed crowd at the Big Dome.

“Di ko naman makukuha [ito] kung hindi dahil sa kanila,” he told the press as soon as the PBA revealed he had accrued the most statistical points in runaway fashion.

READ: 6th PBA BPC plum looms for SMB's Fajardo
 

4-time Most Valuable Player June Mar Fajardo on a 6th BPC award. This was from an interview a week ago, when the PBA bared he was leading the Stats Points race. He just eclipsed his mentor Danny Ildefonso. #PBA2018 @StarSportsHub @philstarnews pic.twitter.com/VFYi5pS7qA

— Denison Rey Dalupang (@sonrd) April 4, 2018

Fajardo garnered a total of 1,279 points to secure the plum. Far in second place was Beermen teammate and a fellow Most Valuable Player himself, Arwind Santos.

Here’s the official breakdown for the points in the BPC race. #PBA2018 pic.twitter.com/G3o0uCg9C2

— Denison Rey Dalupang (@sonrd) April 4, 2018

This latest plum puts Fajardo, the only cager to have won the MVP four times in successive fashion, past his mentor Danny Ildefonso who previously held the league record for most BPC awards.

PBA legend Ramon Fernandez, one of Fajardo’s masters early into his career, foresaw his apprentice’s domination in the league.

“Sinabi ko [noon], barring physical and mental injury, he will dominate in the next 10 years when he enters the league,” he shared with PhilStar.com in February.

"Naka-apat na rin siya na MVPs,” Fernandez added, who himself won four. "Sa tingin ko mahina 'yung walo na makukuha niya na MVP talaga."

All but one of 27-year-old Fajardo’s BPCs came from the Philippine Cup. He notched one from the import-laden Governors Cup back in 2015.

Fajardo’s unprecedented feat comes in a time when his team also seeks to secure an equally historic feat in becoming the first squad to win in the Philippine Cup for four straight years.

San Miguel, as of this article’s posting time, leads the series against Magnolia two games to one.