MANILA – Pageant enthusiasts all over the world are making their fearless forecasts on who may possibly succeed Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach at the 65th edition of the international pageant.

One day before the coronation night, Missosology co-founder Pawee Ventura, who is a self-confessed die hard pageant fan, shared his top five picks after avidly following the Miss Universe candidates from day one until their preliminary competition last Thursday.

A photo posted by Raissa Santana (@santana_raissa) on Jan 27, 2017 at 3:09am PST

First on his list is Miss Universe Brazil Raissa Santana, described by Ventura as “very personable.”

“She’s a people person. She could be the best spokesperson of Miss Universe. I heard from the makeup artists, from the staff of Miss Universe, from insiders that Miss Brazil is really the one who’s leading,” he said.

A photo posted by Mariam Habach Santucci (@mariamhabach) on Jan 27, 2017 at 12:24am PST

Coming in second is Miss Universe Venezuela Mariam Habach, who has earned a lot of positive comments after her outstanding performance during the preliminary round.

“She actually aced both the swimsuit and evening gown rounds. Talagang lahat ng nasa audience, even the national directors, they were commenting na tapos na ang laban, it’s going to be Venezuela,” he said.

Ventura, however, noted that aside from each candidate’s preliminary performance, the judges also take into consideration a lot of other factors.

A photo posted by Chalita Suansane (@namtanlitaa) on Jan 26, 2017 at 10:12am PST

Third on his list is Miss Universe Thailand Chalita Suansane, who made headlines when she arrived in the Philippines with the most number of suitcases.

In addition to Suansane being very competitive, Ventura said her team actually studied what would be a hit among Filipinos to also gain their support.

“Her training team studied what the Filipinos like. Pumatok siya sa panlasa ng mga Pilipino. For example, she was wearing a Barong during the arrival. During the Filipino terno show, she really knew how to carry her terno,” he said.

A photo posted by Marina Jacoby🔸 (@marinajacoby) on Jan 27, 2017 at 7:29pm PST

Also in Ventura’s top five is Miss Nicaragua Marina Jacoby, who is supposedly more pleasant in person.

“She was not a favorite prior to her arrival pero it’s very different when you see them in person. She is so pleasant, sobrang fresh, she’s very angelic. I think the judges will appreciate that kind of beauty. She’s also very fluent in English, she speaks very well,” he said.

Last but not the least, Ventura lists Philippines’ Maxine Medina as among his top five picks.

A photo posted by Maria Mika Maxine Medina (@maxine_medina) on Jan 12, 2017 at 7:58am PST

“We all know that the Philippines is already a powerhouse country when it comes to beauty pageants. Her training team, they brought a different flavor for Maxine. We saw that,” he said.

Ventura added Medina’s positive aura when she came out on stage during the swimsuit and evening gown competition made a lot of difference.

“She’s different from the past Miss Philippines. She was very bubbly on stage and we never saw that. What I really like about Maxine is that when she’s on stage, the stage lights up. It’s just the smile and her charisma that will make her penetrate the top three,” he said.

Medina is currently vying for a back to back Miss Universe win for the Philippines.