12/10/2025
R.I.P. GM Cronnie Cabatingan 🙏
Honoring GM Cronnie Oplado Cabatingan
(April 11, 1960 – October 12, 2025)
It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Grandmaster Cronnie Oplado Cabatingan of Talisay, Cebu, one of the few who completed the full course of Arnes Diablo, also known as Baraw Sugbo or Kutsilyo Cebu. He passed away today at 65 years old due to heart failure, likely brought on by diabetes complications.
A dedicated student of Grandmaster Gregorio Ceniza, GM Cronnie was also a close training partner and lifelong brother in arms to Grandmaster Eduardo “Boy” Ceniza, the current heir of Arnes Diablo and son of GM Gregorio. Together they kept alive one of Cebu’s most authentic and hard-earned blade systems, a tradition that traces its lineage back to Ukit Albaño (Lucresio Ceniza Albaño) and further to the old Saavedra line.
Beyond his training, GM Cronnie’s name became known in his community during the 1980s and 1990s for his extraordinary courage. When trouble broke out and someone threatened others with a knife, people didn’t call the police, they called Cronnie. They knew he could end the situation without ending a life. He was calm where others panicked, precise where others hesitated. His reputation grew from real encounters, not from stories told in the gym but from danger faced in the streets.
There were times he faced knife-wielding men and disarmed them with astonishing control, saving both the attacker and the intended victim. One story often remembered involved a hostage situation where he forced an opening through sheer nerve and timing, approaching the armed man calmly, provoking him just enough to make a move, and then disarming him before anyone could be hurt. Barangay officials often took photos with Cronnie after such incidents, not as trophies but as proof that peace could be restored without bloodshed.
In training, GM Cronnie’s skill was equally humbling. GM Boy Ceniza often recalled that when they practiced disarms, Cronnie’s timing and precision were so refined that even experienced fighters found it impossible to retain their blade. Few reached that level of control. Even fewer applied it as often in real life.
The art that shaped him, Arnes Diablo, is not a theory-based or sport-oriented system. It was born from necessity and tempered by real conflict. Each generation refined it through lived experience, and GM Cronnie embodied that lineage in its truest form. His mastery of the ligid or ground knife work, a rare aspect of the system, marked the completeness of his journey through Arnes Diablo.
Today, we remember him not only as a Grandmaster, but as a protector, a teacher, and a man who proved that true mastery of the blade lies in knowing when not to use it.
Rest well, GM Cronnie. Your life’s work remains in the hands of those you inspired.
