Having handfed his cattle for months and sold down numbers, a two-out-of-two result at the Ekka has eased some of the pain of drought for Pittsworth's Jamie Hollis and partner Mikayla Passmore.
The couple collected junior champion female ribbons in both the Hereford and Limousin rings.
"I'm very proud of what I've achieved at a young age," Jamie, 24, said. "We've been handfeeding for a long time so it's particularly good to get the reward for our effort."
While the Hereford Queensland youth ambassador a few years ago he won $600, which he put towards his foundation female, Kanimbla Revona F153, with help from Binara Poll Hereford's Amanda Burcher.
Mr Hollis' motto is that 'power is in the pedigree', especially for a small outfit such as his that depends on quality, and Kanimbla Revona F153 gave him all that, winning breed broad ribbons at the Ekka for three years in a row and being interbreed female runner-up in 2014.
It was her grandaughter, Kalara Miss Revona P24 that received the Ekka junior female championship.
Mr Hollis said he was excited about her future prospects at Beef 2021, and perhaps at Sydney before that, depending on how she calved.
Hereford judge Adrian Spencer from Ironbark Herefords, Barraba, NSW, himself a previous Royal Queensland Show exhibitor, said Kalara Miss Revona P24 was the type of heifer that fitted the markets.
"In female cattle you're looking for structural correctness in a land where cattle have got to walk," he said. "In my experience, this style of heifer will rear the best calves."
Mr Spencer had similar praise for the senior and grand champion bull exhibited by the Nixon family of Devon Court Herefords at Drillham.
He described Devon Court Advance N142, weighing 1060kg and having an average daily weight gain of 1.51kg, as having everything he liked, a great line and butt shape and travelling well.
"The winning bull has the ability to thrive in the pack but he scans up well and has the right shape for the grid," he said.
Stud principal Tom Nixon said he was 'stoked' with the grand championship, along with the reserve grand championship for Devon Court Nash N138, second in the class, and by the same sire as Advance.
"We try and show every three years to match up with Beef so this is extra, but the fruits are in this ribbon," he said. "Structure is a huge thing for us."
Richard Ogilvie, Wongwibinda NSW won the junior champion bull ribbon for the second year in succession, with Te Angie Prospector.
Binara Poll Herefords showed the senior champion cow who went on to be grand champion female, Binara Kalara Revona M072, whose mother was Kanimbla Revona F153.
Stud principal Amanda Burcher said she had just missed out in the interbreed championship, being named in the top four, but it was pleasing to be able to put a whiteface up among the best in the state.
No of exhibits: 58