The new season of The Block starts on Sunday.
And producers of the popular reality series are promising a more affordable auction after last season’s anticlimax.
Two of the 2022 renovations were passed after winners Omar and Oz pocketed a whopping $1.66 million after selling their block for $5,666,666, all thanks to bidder Adrian “Mr Lambo” Portelli raising the price of their up house.
Fan favorites Tom and Sarah Jane, meanwhile, walked away with just $20,000 after their house went under the hammer for $4,100,000.99.
“It was one of the most dramatic shows of the year, the equal of any major football final,” said Block producer Julian Cress. TV tonight on Wednesday.
The Block producers are promising a more affordable 2023 season finale after multi-millionaire ‘Mr Lambo’ pushed up the price of the winning house last year
Two of the 2022 renovations were passed after winners Omar and Oz pocketed a whopping $1.66 million after selling their pad for $5,666,666, all thanks to bidder Adrian “Mr Lambo” Portelli winning the price of up their house
The cast of this year’s The Block
“To see one team walk away with a record amount in the very first auction of the night and then the heartbreak that followed was impossible for anyone to predict, including me,” he continued.
He added that fans can expect the homes to go up for auction this year with a reserve price of “around $3 million,” which he says is now the market price in the capitals for an “ambitious home.”
Cress also responded to criticism from fans who complained that the show’s renovations are only accessible to millionaires like Adrian Portelli, who bought Omar and Oz’s house.
“Everyone is welcome at our auctions,” he said.
“I don’t think anyone should be excluded from a public auction. I’m not even sure it’s legal, to be honest. But billionaires fighting over homes and paying too much doesn’t make for boring television either.
“They had a fight in the middle of an auction about who had the biggest bank account, and one of them got advice from his dog.”
Block producer Julian Cress pictured told TV Tonight that last year’s auction was ‘equal to any grand finale’
He added that he would welcome Portelli ‘100 percent’.
Omar Slaimankhel and Ozman ‘Oz’ Abu Malik’s record-breaking victory over The Block last year sparked a bitter war of words on social media.
Conspiracy theories ran wild on Facebook and Twitter, with some viewers baselessly accusing the Western Sydney pals of “rigging” the auction by bringing in their “millionaire friend” to drive up the price.
Portelli – an online promotions guru, arrived at the auction in a flashy yellow Lamborghini and opened bidding on House 5 for $4.5 million, which far exceeded the reserve price of $4.08 million.
His aggressive bidding meant that eventual buyer Danny Wallis ended up paying an eye-watering $5,666,666.66 for the four-bedroom, 10-acre estate, making the boys instant millionaires with a total profit of $1,686,666.66 – the largest victory in The Block’s 18-year history.
After their win, some fans speculated that the auction was “dodgy” and that Portelli was “set up” to force Wallis to spend more. But an equal number of viewers countered by saying the boys won fairly and called the criticism “racist.”
That’s our boy! That’s our boy!’ Omar and Oz cried out when Portelli made the first offer.
He raised the offer several times, but was ultimately no match for Wallis, a frequent buyer on The Block, who won the house after a tense back and forth.
Wallis is known for his appearances on The Block, his flamboyant bidding style and huge spending.
Pictured: Block host Scott Cam
Omar and Oz earned the largest amount on reserve of all five Block homes, selling their property for $5,666,666 and taking home a record
This year’s season of The Block wrapped filming in June with the final touches and review of the Charming Street adobes completed in Melbourne’s Hampton East.
Realtor Marty Fox joins the beloved team of existing judges, Darren Palmer, Shaynna Blaze and Neale Whitaker.
Meanwhile, Scott Cam and Shelley Craft return as hosts of the hit series.