While I may have already zeroed in on the girl I am predicting will win the whole thing, it still bears watching how the rest of the top placements will pan out after all the winners will have been announced tonight. Anti-climactic if you will, I’m still very much interested in knowing the cast of the official honor roll.

And so, here we go again with my personal forecast of the results.

The Four Princesses

Setting aside my #1 choice for the wrap-up at the end of this post, allow me to concentrate first on the ladies with the highest probability of snatching the win from right under her nose. And who is more capable of landing 1st Princess but the candidate who knows Cory Quirino more than anyone else in the batch. Having landed 3rd Princess back in 2011, Bianca Paz is aware of how the system works. She has in mind the exacting requirements of the organizers, and can deliver the goods according to the desired outcome. Why else would she risk re-joining had she not received feelers of encouragement from the hand/s that rock the cradle so to speak?

Janicel Lubina. The underdog everyone loves to hype. And for excellent reasons. She’s young, tall, exotic and with a smoldering presence onstage. But is she really ready to hit the jackpot this soon? It’s no secret that her communication skills are still wanting of – for lack of better words – alertness and smooth delivery. Her body may be buff, but her (still unwrapped) gift of gab still needs extreme buffing. In the end, I can picture her in 2nd Princess mode, unless she performs worse than I originally expect her to.

With the sensuous and expert sway of her hips, Patricia Lae Ejercitado can arrest the eyes of everyone. And once she displays her enviably dusky and shapely frame for inspection, no well-meaninged judge will dare give her a low score. If that’s not enough, her very Pinay features are the stuff our local beauties are world-renowned for. So why put her in the lower-tier-of-the-magic-circle 3rd Princess spot? Some might say that it would be unfair to base my assessment on how she may have handled previous participations in Bb. Pilipinas. But what can I do? A previous performance is an excellent gauge as to how she will handle the same situation all over again. And that is the psychology of behavioral trending. I could be wrong. But happily so if ever.

If there is one contender whose articulate mind and tongue can capture the essence of Miss World Philippines (and Miss World for that matter), Zahra Saldua could be it. Her Muslim lineage should also be a welcome add-on, given the hosting of like-religioned Indonesia. This is the girl who can express herself in a variety of ways. But beyond that, can she keep up with the more pageant-related musts that include physical fitness, effortless elegance and an all-around queenly bearing? My answer could be yes, but stutteringly so. 4th Princess should be a justifiable reward for her.

The Ladies-in-Waiting

Let’s do my wildcard first because she could be a serious spoiler in the making. Omarie Linn Osuna is the type of beauty who can mesmerize anyone in person. She exudes an aura that would make it hard for anyone to pinpoint her lineage right away – is she really a Filipina? is it possible that she is a Caribbean babe? or is she a Latina by way of Olongapo?

I’m going out on a limb and predict that this Kagandahang Flores protégé will definitely join Bb. Pilipinas 2014 if and when she fails to land a big win here. But that’s getting far ahead of the journey. If she plays her cards right (and with nary a blunder), we might end up seeing the two representatives of Olongapo City as the last two women standing. The possibility is sending me tingles.

So now we’re down to the girls bubbling in my #6-#10 spots.

Vina Openiano and Zandra Flores are the game players who can stamp their class on the competition and show that they deserve to be semifinalists at the very least. Samantha Bernardo, Jennifer Hammond and Pia Kamil Ochengco are the first-timers who are likely to have a secret ace or two up their sleeves. Anyone among them is capable of stealing a Top 5 spot if a favored candidate will stumble on the road to the crown.

So there. Let’s see how I will come close (or not so close) to the actual slate of winners.

P.S. Don’t forget to catch the TV telecast of Miss World Philippines 2013 tonight on GMA-7 at 10:00PM. 😉