This marks the fourth time the La Toñdena ballclub is playing in the championship series and the first since Robert Jaworski became player-coach of the team in 1985.
Former Toyota teammates Ramon Fernandez and Robert Jaworski played on opposite sides in the finals for the first time.
In the Open (Third) Conference, Billy Ray Bates - known as "The Black Superman" - who led the famed Crispa Redmanizers to a grandslam in 1983, teamed up with last year's Ginebra reinforcement and best import Michael Hackett in an explosive combination that have captured the excitement of PBA fans from the moment it made headlines.
After eight years since joining the league in 1979, the La Tondeña ballclub won their first PBA championship by winning the Open Conference crown over Manila Beer, four games to one.
League pioneer Francis Arnaiz retired from active playing after seeing action only in the first round of eliminations of the Open Conference.