Road To The Marlbank Main Auction September 27th: Top Performers In Hotspot 3 - Current Lots On Auction From These Fanciers

Die Vrystaters came out on top In Hotspot 3 with Luiz Almeida and André Fivaz closing out the podium. Burger & Muller with the best pigeon across hotspot 2 & 3 while Robert & Boesman takes Velocity News fancier of the race.

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Marlbank One Loft Main Auction ends Sunday, Sep 27, 2026 1:00 PM! Registration link is below. Registration help: Pigeon Auction House (079 669 6747). Auction info: Johan Jonker (079 524 3045) or Wayne McPherson (082 222 2060). Register and invest in your future success!

Die Vrystaters Victorious In Hotspot 3 Edenburg 380km against 1350 pigeons - Robert & Boesman Fancier of the Race and Burger & Muller takes Pigeon of the Week

1st Place Hotspot 3 Edenburg

Die Vrystaters delivered a standout campaign highlighted by consistent top positions. The loft secured 4th place on the season's Most Top 10 Arrivals leaderboard, anchored by three different birds placing 1st, 3rd, and 6th. The highlight of the season came at Hotspot 3 Edenburg, where ZA-25-OVRF-6328 earned a decisive victory. Beyond top-tier finishes, the loft proved its reliability in the Top 25 arrivals standings, landing 4 birds to finish 9th overall. These achievements solidify the loft's reputation for raising genuine race winners capable of performing under pressure.

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Die Vrystaters' ZA-25-OVRF-6328 won Hotspot 3 Edenburg — one of three Top 10 arrivals finishes for the season (1st, 3rd, 6th), good for 4th overall on the Most Top 10 Arrivals leaderboard. Also 9th overall in the Top 25 arrivals ranking (4 birds). Lot 74 on auction!

Lot 074 - ZA-25-LECHELLE-762 "YEBO"

ENTERED BY DIE VRYSTATERS

MARLBANK OLR WINTER - SEASON 2026

3rd HS 5 - COLESBURG 515KM (1261 PIGEONS)

44th HS 5 - FINAL - RICHMOND 655KM (905 PIGEONS)

54th HS 4 - SPRINGFONTEIN 444KM (1328 PIGEONS)

View Lot 74

2nd Place Hotspot 3 Edenburg

Luiz Almeida, based in Vaalpark, Sasolburg, recently announced his retirement from the pigeon sport after achieving exceptional results in the Vaal Posduif Unie (VPU). Notably, in 2025, he secured both 1st and 2nd Youngbird Ace Pigeons in the VPU. Additionally, he was honored with a SANPO award for pioneering the introduction of GPS technology to the pigeon sport.

3rd Place Hotspot 3 Edenburg

Competing in the Vanderbijlpark Pigeon Club under the Vaal Posduif Unie, the father-and-son partnership of Andries and Johan Fivaz has built a highly successful loft. Their foundation relies heavily on top-tier breeding, with approximately 60% of their stock deriving from previous-generation Gys Louw pigeons—tracing back to Kees Bosua and the renowned "auto Koppel," featuring Lot 7 as a key foundation cock. The remainder of their team is built upon a proven family of grizzles originating from Gerald Swart in the 1970s.

This prominent grizzle line notably produced "Zarina," the 2022 South African Gold Medal winner flown by Gys Louw. At the core of the Fivaz loft's current success is a key breeding pair: a full brother to Zarina paired with a daughter of Zarina's paternal uncle. A two-time winning daughter from this mating has already produced the 2026 2nd Sprint Ace Pigeon at Marlbank, adding to the loft's early accomplishments at the OLR, which include securing 5th Ace Pigeon in their debut season.

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ZA-25-MAC-853, raced by Andre Fivaz, stood out as one of the season's standout performers. This pigeon topped the Pigeon of the Week standings after securing two podium finishes with an average gap of only 1:15.595 behind the winner across 4 races. André secured 2nd Sprint Ace and achieved the 3rd highest number of appearances in the season-long Velocity News Fancier of the Race standings (4 appearances, 6.00 average rank) - exceptional trifecta of success spanning three distinct categories.

Pigeon of the Week

The Pretoria based team Burger & Muller won Pigeon of the week with ZA-25-TPA-10014, the best pigeon in the loft across Hotspot 2 & Hotspot 3 being 18.65 seconds behind the winning pigeon across both hotspots!

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Team Burger & Muller placed eight birds in the Ace Top 100: three in Sprint Aces (best: 17th), three in Overall Aces (best: 37th), and two in the Marathon Aces. An early 2nd-place finish helped secure 20th overall on the Top 10 Arrivals leaderboard, with four birds reaching the season's Top 50 arrivals. Lot 3 on auction.

Lot 003 - ZA-25-TPA-9781

ENTERED BY BURGER & MULLER

MARLBANK OLR WINTER - SEASON 2026

59th ACE

2nd HS 7 - HANOVER 580KM (984 PIGEONS)

96th HS 6 - NOUPOORT 566KM (1230 PIGEONS)

View Lot 3

Fancier of the Race

Prominent pigeon racers Roberto Lenci and Boesman Hattingh represent the Nigel Racing Pigeon Club in the OERF Union. The duo recently secured equal win second place at the Carnival Loft 2025 Winter Final Race.

Their loft is built on established family strains, including Spritzy, Tom Locks, Golden Carelly, Bak 17, and Kannibaal lines. Key cross-pairings feature Tom Lock x Spritzy and Golden Carrely x Spritzy, supplemented by newly introduced Kittel genetics to cross with their foundation stock.

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Highlighting their season, they claimed a first-place finish in the Fancier of the Race ranking. That single appearance secured them 23rd place in the overall full-season standings. They also featured once in the Follow Up ranking, taking 5th place and concluding the season in 30th place overall.

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South Africa Marlbank One Loft Race

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