'Nuestra Belleza Latina' Recap: 30 Girls Meet Judges And Only 6 Are Selected; Who Made It?

The day finally arrived, and Univision premiered the 8th season of “Nuestra Belleza Latina.” This year, the show brings a new format, with hosts Chiquinquirá Delgado, Pedro Moreno and Alejandra Espinoza, who happens to be the first winner of the show. This reality show gathers 12 finalists, selected after going through different tasks and excelling in them, and puts them in a mansion, where even more challenges await. They have to prove that they have what it takes to be a beauty queen that represents Latin America.

But before we see the 12 on their quest to win the “Nuestra Belleza Latina” title, we get to see a sneak peek of the selection process and what the judges, Lupita Jones and Osmel Sousa went through to decide which girls are ready to take on the challenge of becoming the new beauty queen. And that’s exactly what we saw yesterday, Sunday, Feb. 16 on the premiere of NBL.

On the first episode of this new season, 30 of the 60 girls who were pre-selected during auditions had to prove their talent, beauty (inside and out) and personality in front of the judges and stylist Jomari Goyso, who sat on the third judge’s chair as a guest. The person that will be the third judge throughout the rest of the show will be announced in the following episodes.

The 30 girls whose turn it was this first episode walked down the runway modeling a black bikini and saying their names and nationalities to the judges. They had to reply to different questions sent by viewers through social media, and based on the best answers, the judges selected 12 girls out of the first 30 who later had to demonstrate their talent. Some danced, others sang, a few proved their reporting skills, but only six made it to the famous mansion.

The first six who heard Osmel tell them his famous “Eres bella, firma aquí” (You’re beautiful, sign here) were Yesenia Hernández, half Puerto-Rican, half Mexican, Josephine Ochoa from Guatemala, Alina Robert from Cuba, Gabriela Alvarez from Venezuela, and Aly Villegas and Prissila Sánchez, both from Mexico. Next Sunday, Feb. 23, the 30 girls left will face the judges who will choose the last six to complete the group. The girls will get tips from two former Miss Universe, Alicia Machado and Denise Quiñones, and even the hosts will guide the girls, since Chiquinquirá is a former beauty queen and Alejandra inaugurated the show as the first Latin beauty.