Precious Paula Nicole

 O'Bar drag queen wins DRP Season 1 top crown

By Earl D.C. Bracamonte

O'Bar's top act, Precious Paula Nicole, emerged the victor at the culmination of Drag Race Philippines first season. The 34-year-old drag queen from Daet, Camarines Norte bested eleven other hopefuls to win the historic Philippine crown.

"Life is precious. This is Precious Paula Nicole, your Drag Race superstar," uttered the teary-eyed champion, moments after crowned by show host Paolo Ballesteros.

Lip sync is not everything, but, in last night's sing-off, it proved that it can be in crucial moments. The first wheel spin paired Precious with Eva La Queen to perform Ru Paul's "Sissy That Walk," from a choice of song titles contained in a chest and carried by the show's pit crew. Precious won Round 1.

The next set pitted Marina against Xilhouette to Ru Paul's "Call Me Mother." Marina won Round 2. So that the finalists would have no idea who'll win the crown, the two sing off sets were shot in two different days. 

For the final sing-off to the crown, Precious and Marina fought it out with Gloc-9's "Sirena." Based on the reaction of the spectators to the lip sync battle, it was clear that Precious dominated the stage.

Prior to Precious' crowning moment, the production bestowed a special award to Davao's Lady Morgana. The 30-year-old drag queen from Mindanao was crowned by Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach as the season's Miss Congeniality winner. Voted by the other contestants, Lady Morgana received a cash prize of Php 40,000.

Precious Paula Nicole went home with Php 1-million plus a year's supply of Patrick Starr's One-Size beauty products. She will, hopefully, compete with other country winners in a future edition of the Drag Race World series.

Precious' younger brother, Junjun, who was part of the "Twinning" episode last week, were among those that celebrated her victory at the Cove Manila last night. The final week's jurors were Kalad Karen, Jiggly Caliente, Rajo Laurel, and Jon Santos.

Meanwhile, pundits are of the opinion that Marina, as this year's season runner-up, may be sent to compete in the All-Stars series, a competition for non-winners for a chance at a world title.

This early, fans are already looking forward to DRP's second season!

The entire season of Drag Race Philippines was aired every Wednesday over HBO Go and Discovery + channels.