“Minute to Win It,” hosted by Luis Manzano, became one of ABS-CBN’s most memorable game shows, featuring nerve-wracking yet thrilling tasks. Both regular contestants and celebrities faced the same tension and excitement on stage. Among them was Kapamilya actress Julia Montes, who took on the games with courage, wit, and determination.
In this nostalgic throwback, let’s revisit Julia’s amazing “Minute to Win It” journey to winning ₱500,000.
Julia revealed that she practiced hard in preparation, as she intended to dedicate the grand prize to her grandmother, Flory Hautea. She had to face 10 levels, each to be completed within one minute—the format that defines the pressure of “Minute to Win It”—with ₱1,000,000 at stake. She was given three lives before elimination.
In Level 1, called “Back Flip,” Julia had to toss pencils into the air using the back of her hand and catch them. She completed the task six times in just 30 seconds without breaking a sweat. This was followed by “Chocolate Unicorn,” where she stacked and balanced chocolate sandwich cookies on her forehead for three seconds.
The next stage, “Chop Stack,” tested her balance as she used chopsticks to stack two lip balms. She breezed through the challenge and finished quickly. Julia admitted that when she used to watch “Minute to Win It” on TV, the games looked easy—but trying them herself made her realize how difficult they truly were. Later, in “Whack Job,” she had to shoot eggs into a glass, which she executed perfectly, allowing her to advance to the next round.
In “CD Dominos,” she arranged CD cases in a domino setup, with the final case dropping into a basket. Julia added another win to her list of victories, earning ₱75,000 and moving on to the “Card Ninja” level. There, she had to throw playing cards and make them stick into a watermelon on the other side. Her first attempt fell short, but she tried again and successfully completed the challenge.
“Flip Your Lid” required Julia to flip a cup and land it onto a bottle. After several tries, she finally succeeded and advanced to the next round. At Level 8, “Triple Pong Plop,” she bounced a pingpong ball across three plates before sinking it into a jar. She nailed it with just two seconds left on the clock, as the tension continued to build.
In the ninth level, “Ball Cap,” Julia struggled with a bottle cap and a golf ball, trying to balance the ball on top instead of the lid. In a flash, she overcame the challenge and advanced to the final battle for the ₱1,000,000 prize.
When asked whether she wanted to continue, Julia made the firm decision to stop and chose to go home with the ₱500,000 she had earned after nine levels.
Julia shared that her “Minute to Win It” journey was a fun and unforgettable experience. She said she never expected to reach so many rounds and dedicated her victory to her Lola Flory.
Catch “Minute to Win It” airing weekdays, 5:45pm on ABS-CBN sa All TV2, Kapamilya Channel, A2Z and Kapamilya Online Live (KOL).
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