Team Philippines, take three

(INTRO) We haven’t had much luck in The Amazing Race Asia. In Season 1, Jeena & Ernie were the first team to be eliminated ever, with Aubrey & Jacqueline following closely at their heels as the second. In Season 2, Henry & Terri entertained us immensely with their real-life drama, but, after several strokes of extraordinary luck, they were booted out on the eight leg, with Marc & Rovilson almost making it at third place. But good news! Team Philippines is still in the running in Season 3 of The Amazing Race Asia—at least until tonight, when the final leg will air at 9pm on AXN.

The ninth out of 10 legs brought the remaining four teams—Geoff & Tisha (Team Philippines), Sam & Vince (Team Hong Kong), Ida & Tania (Team Malaysia) and A.D. & Fuzzie (Team Singapore)—to Pune, in West India. Geoff & Tisha had been leading the pack, despite not having any alliances with any of the other teams, but constant spats seem to have weighed them down a little, not to mention cost them a lot of fans. The rest of the teams don’t like them. As a matter of fact, in the TARA interviews of eliminated teams, nobody seems to be rooting for Team Philippines at all. It’s safe to say they’re no Marc & Rovilson in terms of likeability, and yet they’re not as fascinating as constantly-on-the-warpath-with-each-other Henry & Terri either.

Former Powerboy Geoff Rodriguez can be a pain—a trait he readily admits to—so it’s a good thing Tisha’s a couple of years older and knows how to handle his tantrums. Still, there’s no denying they still come on strong. And it’s still great to see them holding on to the Philippine flag—even if neither of them are Filipinos, strictly speaking. 

The ninth leg was made interesting by a new marker: the U-Turn. Getting the U-Turn markers means the team would have to go back to the Detour task they chose not to do and complete it. In this leg, Geoff & Tisha chose to U-Turn A.D. & Fuzzie.

Geoff & Tisha themselves were close to getting the U-Turn from Ida & Tania, who, unfortunately for them, didn’t have their picture to post, thereby keeping them from doing so. It could be a good sign for Team Philippines—or it could be a trigger of the notorious Amazing Race karma that could hit them in tonight’s tenth and final leg.

 I came across some interesting theories as to who will win in TARA 3. Based on the trends from previous seasons, it could be Sam & Vince or Geoff & Tisha. During TARA 2, Colin & Adrian appeared in a major Sony commercial before they came out as the official winners. Sam & Vince already have a full-length Sony TV ad out. However, Henry & Bernie (Team Malaysia 2), who were eliminated in the 8th leg, also came out with a Sony ad shortly afterwards.

There are several spoiler theories that point to Geoff & Tisha. First of all, the TARA 1 launch party was held in Malaysia, and Team Malaysia won. On the other hand, the TARA 2 launch party was held in Singapore, and Team Singapore won. The TARA 3 launch party was held in Makati, Philippines. Apart from that, rumors circulating in forums—you just have to love online forums—say that Geoff & Tisha appeared in a taped episode of local sports talk show Hard Ball with hosts Bill Velasco, Jinno Rufino and Boyet Sison. Jinno supposedly started congratulating Tisha before saying, “Ooops!” and the other hosts reprimanded him, with Bill reminding him of the non-disclosure clause.

I didn’t see that episode myself—as if there’d ever be a chance of me watching a sports show—so I don’t know how true that is. What I do know is that the non-disclosure agreement, when broken, comes with a $5 million penalty. 

Whether or not the theories carry any weight, we really don’t have long to wait. Let’s see if the Philippine flag will be unfurled yet again on the way to the TARA finish line tonight. And let’s see if Team Philippines will finally finish first.

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