12/08/2026
FEATURE INTERVIEW | LIPAD PILIPINAS MAGAZINE
MEET THE PROFESSOR | ERYCK MADRIGAL
Written by Jendy Asuncion
The Mentor Who Teaches You How to Think, Not Just What to Do
In every generation of pigeon racing, there are a few rare individuals who do more than collect trophies. They shape minds. They sharpen judgment. They elevate the way fanciers think, prepare, select, and compete. One of those rare individuals is the man many respectfully call “Prof”, Eryck Madrigal.
More than a champion breeder, more than a strategist, Prof Eryck is known in the lofts as a mentor who does not simply give answers, he gives understanding. When you ask him what to do, he teaches you why it should be done. When you seek shortcuts, he reminds you that in pigeon racing, there are none, only discipline, observation, adjustment, and patience.
His philosophy is built on common sense refined by experience. His systems are grounded in science, but tested in the unforgiving arena of competition. He is the type of mentor who equips you not just to win races, but to win seasons, build families, and create champions that last.
Today, Lipad Pilipinas Magazine sits down with Prof Eryck Madrigal to uncover the thinking behind his methods, his legendary bloodlines, and the principles that shaped his rise as a Hall of Fame pigeon master.
📖 FULL INTERVIEW
✅ Prof, can you take us back to the very beginning, how did your journey in pigeon racing start, and what were the earliest lessons that shaped your philosophy today?
I began my pigeon-racing endeavors in the US in 1996, having previously kept pigeons in the Philippines and participated in informal street racing. After relocating to the US, I lived in an apartment and built a small loft behind the dumpster. I tried to feed wild pigeons at the park, which sparked my interest in pigeon racing. I started researching the subject online and eventually purchased pedigreed pigeons from Campbell Strange, incurring significant expenses. From 1996 to 1998, I failed to achieve any notable success, which left me frustrated. I then sought the expertise of Mr. George Contento, a distinguished fancier in the club I had joined. He recommended that I replace my existing birds, which I did. We redesigned my loft to emulate his, using the same bloodlines, feeds, system, and training. If we followed his methods, my results should be close to his. And they were. This experience taught me that success is contingent upon various factors, horses for courses. Pedigree is nothing without results. Pedigree actually starts with your winning bird, especially when you are choosing bloodlines known for distance or speed.
✅ You are known for your selection theories. Why do you believe proper selection is the foundation of long-term winning, and how does it give a fancier a true competitive advantage?
It is challenging to select quality pigeons without experience or an established base family. Even the best bloodline horse still requires a skilled jockey to succeed. Each fancier faces unique challenges, including time constraints, financial limitations, loft maintenance, bloodline selection, racing system, and luck. Hank Vernazza's advice to me was always to find birds that work for me. Different bloodlines also demand varying levels of training. Consistency is key. When selecting birds, I prioritize characteristics such as an apple-shaped body, good structure, buoyancy, supple muscles, silky feathers, balance, and a nice wing, eye, and throat.
✅ Many fanciers focus heavily on feeds. You emphasize diet adjustment. Can you explain why adjusting nutrition based on season, workload, and condition is critical to performance?
With an established bloodline, conditioning becomes much more manageable because I am already familiar with its strengths and weaknesses. My bloodline, for example, consists of fast-maturing, tough, and distance-capable birds that excel at 1200 and below speed. They have successfully raced from 150 up to 600 miles, with exceptional performance starting at 250 miles and beyond.
✅ You often talk about feather quality as a silent indicator of class. Why is feathering so important, and what exactly should a serious fancier be looking for?
Let us discuss feathers, which are a key indicator of a pigeon's overall health. When evaluating an unknown bird, I always examine its feathers first. Whenever I visit or receive an invitation to another loft, the very first thing I assess is the quality of the feathers. If the birds there have silky, powdery feathers, visible oil streaks, and healthy down, I am immediately interested in handling them. In my opinion, this tells me that the fancier is knowledgeable and intentional in their breeding practices. The most important factor in pigeon racing is always health, and health is clearly reflected in feather quality, muscle tone, and eye clarity. Paying close attention to these details helps you identify promising racing birds early on.
✅ One of your most iconic lines is the Kratos family. What is the baseline of Kratos, and how did this line evolve into a Hall of Fame bloodline?
Kratos is the name of the bird I raced in three money races, and he won money in all three. Beyond that, he is a Club, Section, and Combine Champion, a California Ace Bird, and an AU Hall of Fame bird. He also produces many one-loft race winners as well as club and combine winners. His bloodline is the EM line, Vernazza crossed with Devriendt as the base. Every year, I infuse different outside bloodlines, keep the winners, and discard the outside blood afterward. That is my breeding mentality. Focusing on proven lines like Kratos's EM line increases the likelihood of consistent success, because reliable performance comes from birds with a strong, tested pedigree. Breeding with a clear, consistent strategy helps produce both competitive racers and reliable breeders.
✅ For beginners and even veterans, can you share practical ways to select a pigeon even when you know nothing about its background, based purely on body structure, balance, eyes, and feather texture?
To clarify, the selection of birds depends largely on personal preference, which can vary significantly from one fancier to another. The qualities that make an ideal bird for one person may be different for someone else. Over my 30 years in pigeon racing, I have handled countless champion birds. If I handled 100 champions and found that 80 percent share similar qualities while 20 percent do not, which would you rely on? Ultimately, it comes down to probability and percentages. Consider Kratos himself. I have bred him consistently for five to six rounds each year, producing 10 to 12 offspring every time. Even with a bird of his quality, only one or two out of those 10 to 12 birds actually succeed. What happens to the rest? That is the reality of breeding. Some fanciers enter 100 birds in one-loft races and get wins, but what is their actual winning percentage? Do they win consistently every time? When I select a breeder, I prioritize birds that are siblings to champions or consistently successful birds. If that is not available, I look for birds from reputable, trustworthy sources. Once I have the bird, my primary focus is its overall health, which I assess through feather condition, eyes, muscles, wattle, and throat.
✅ You always say that “adjustment is more powerful than stubborn systems.” Can you explain how reading results, conditions, and performance helps you refine your program season after season?
Adjustment is more powerful than following rigid, stubborn systems. When you truly understand how your birds behave, react, move, and look, including the condition of their muscles, noses, and throats, you are able to identify what they actually need rather than forcing them into a fixed routine.
✅ In your experience, what are the most common mistakes that prevent good pigeons from becoming great champions?
The most common mistakes are not having a proper feathering management system, not understanding proper nutrition, and lacking consistency. The results you get from your pigeons are directly based on how much time and effort you actually devote to them.
✅ You consistently remind fanciers that winning is never guaranteed. How should racers balance ambition, patience, and emotional discipline in this sport?
Simply have fun and commit to learning how to become a better fancier with every race. You are truly competing with yourself more than anyone else. Strive for better results each time you race. Once you win, the next challenge becomes the hardest, because now you must learn how to maintain your position at the top. And once you achieve consistent racing success, the next step is learning how to share your bloodline, your methods, and your knowledge so that you can build a lasting legacy.
✅ For the next generation of Filipino fanciers, what core principles should they build their loft on if they want to create champions that can dominate both local and international competitions?
There is no shortcut in pigeon racing. Understand that pigeons are athletes. Study all the theories and principles of the sport, and apply them to your advantage. The sooner you understand that building and developing a base family of birds is the only real way to achieve consistent results, the faster you will progress.
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