Morante overshadowed the withdrawals of Robleño and Florito

Amateur friends…

Like virtually everyone in the bullfighting world, Morante de la Puebla's retirement caught us off guard. We continue to perceive his feat on Sunday, Hispanic Day, at the Plaza de Las Ventas in Madrid with a kind of shock: first, he received a royal beating in a somersault, then he cut off two ears to earn a proper exit on the shoulders, and then suddenly he went into the ring to untie his ponytail. Dressed in mauve, the favorite color of Antoñete, the bullfighter he honored that day, his decision shook the bullfighting world.

It was so shocking that many forgot that in that Sunday bullfight on October 12 there were details that were marked with asterisks.

Because if there is one thing worth highlighting from that celebration in Madrid, it was Fernando Robleño, a bullfighter of great epic skill, and Florencio Fernández “Florito,” the famous foreman of Las Ventas, who retired.

They deserved to leave through the Puerta Grande, without a doubt.

Specialist

Robleño, a bullfighter from Madrid, specialized in fighting tough bulls, and I was able to see him twice in San Isidro, facing off against José Escolar's bulls. These bulls are true horned demons, with irregular behavior and generally armed, so that just looking at them is terrifying.

It's quite a feat to have him announced for so many years with the Escolar team, other times with the Adofo Martín team, with the Victorinos, and also with the Miura team. His face has become that of an older man from the wear and tear of fighting those animals.

And for 39 years, "Florito" was in charge of leading the bulls to the bullring to remove the bulls that were being returned to the corrals. It was quite a spectacle to see him in that role. I greeted him once at a raffle. Everyone wanted a photo with him. But since Morante retired the same day, no one remembered to carry them out on his shoulders.—Gaspar Silveira Malaver