Calvin Abueva fined 20k for comments about Maika Rivera during Phoenix-Blackwater game

FILE: “FIRST GAME, FIRST WIN! Let’s make it two in a row tomorrow! Kita-kits!” (Photo: Phoenix Pulse Fuel Masters/Facebook)

Controversy erupted when Parks told reporters after their 103-98 loss that during the fourth quarter of the heated game, Abueva made inappropriate gestures towards Rivera and cursed at her, yet the forward later denied it during an Instagram live session on his social media, explaining that it was Rivera who flashed him a dirty finger and called him monkey before he fouled out in the final 11 seconds of the game.

In a statement posted on their Twitter account last Saturday, June 1, team manager Paolo Bugia shared, “While the Fuel Masters stands by and support Abueva, the enigmatic forward should have exercised prudence under such circumstances,” adding, “As a preventive measure, we decided to deduct P20,000 from the salary of Mr. Abueva which has been communicated to him and has accepted such decision.”

The statement continued, “We regret the incident that has stoked emotions among players and fans. We wish to move forward from this regrettable incident which we believed were caused by our emotional attachment to the sport we loved most,” concluding, “While PBA players are in the nature of public figures, we also ask the fans to also be more circumspect in cheering for their respective teams and players to prevent this incident from happening again.”

In addition to the fine by his team, the issue has been sent to PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial, who asked to summon Abueva on Monday, June 3 where more appropriate consequences will be decided.

Parks also defended his girlfriend pertaining to Abueva’s accusations after the game, telling reporters, “I know one thing for sure though, my girl is not racist,” elaborating, “She comes from a good family, and she’s dating me, same as Calvin, a Fil-Am also. So, it would be very discriminatory to me if she would have said that word, that quote-unquote, that was allegedly said.” And despite his fellow basketball player directing an apology to him during his Instagram live session, Parks continued, “Like I said, before this, me and Calvin had no issues, we follow each other on Instagram, we say hello, we say what’s up. I felt like it’s just more of just trying to protect Maika. At the end of the day, she’s still a woman. We gotta be professionals. We handle business, we did what we can today, and got the win.”