Feria de Béziers 2024: a large poster for aficionados for the bullfight this Friday, August 16

Daniel Luque Midi Libre – Stéphan Guin

Daniel Luque Midi Libre presentation paper – Stéphan Guin

Talavante Midi Libre – Stéphan Guin

Lobito Santiago Domecq indulté 2023 Midi Libre – Stéphan Guin

Borja Jimenez. Midi Libre – Stéphan Guin

Alejandro Talavante, Daniel Luque et Borja Domecq feront le paseo dans les arènes pour affronter les Santiago Domecq. Trois toreros et un élevage au sommet de leur forme depuis deux temporadas.

This second bullfight of the Feria, this Friday August 16 at 6 p.m., is certainly the most accomplished poster of the Feria with the best breeding of the last two temporadas and three bullfighters at the top of their art and who are currently in great shape.

Indeed, Santiago Domecq is part of the demanding encaste branch of the Domecq galaxy and they have impressed with their regularity and performance for two years. No one has forgotten the indulgence of « Lobito » by Juan Leal in Béziers and the toro de vuelta in Madrid last year. In 2024, the Andalusian breeding struck two new big shots by collecting the Best Bull and Best Bullfight Awards at the Seville Fair and « Escondido » was pardoned in Valencia during the July Fair by Roman.

The Santiago Domecq will be fought by three bullfighters who have the skills to channel their bravery and highlight their class. Alejandro Talavante has become, for a year now, this unique bullfighter with an exceptional purity and relaxation that he mixes with his usual inspirations and creations. Daniel Luque won the “golden ear” 2,023 and confirmed in Spain his status as number one in France for several temporadas. The bullfighter from Gerena is in his prime and his technique and his keen sense of lidia allow him to get the most out of each opponent and the big doors are multiplying daily this year again. The two figuras will be accompanied by Borja Jimenez, the revelation of last season with Fernando Adrian, who will want to shake up the established order and prove that his prize as the triumphant of the Feria de Madrid justifies being invited to the table of the best.

Borja Jimenez, the new star since his triumph in Madrid

The protégé of the Espartaco family is a native of the same village of Espartinas in the suburbs of Seville. After a promising career as a novillero in France and Spain, Borja Jimenez experienced the difficult aftermath of the alternative that he celebrated in Seville in 2015. Contracts were rare from 2016 to 2022 (between one and three per year) and he often had to cross the Atlantic to do a few paseos in Peru to dress in lights. Training regularly in Andalusia with Sébastien Castella, who he is close to, Borja Jimenez's perseverance was finally rewarded last year. His career was rebuilt during the winter of 2023 in Salamanca when the talent maker that is the former bullfighter Julian Guerra accompanied him. His performances in the Copa Chenel allowed him to earn the respect of the professionals and he stood out for his courage and depth in Madrid against the Margé and Pamplona. The big door obtained on October 12 in Madrid with three ears of the Victorino Martin finally allowed him to integrate the biggest ferias this temporada.

Borja Jimenez did not let these opportunities that he had been hoping for for so long pass him by and the aficionados are charmed by his deep, classic and very sincere bullfighting, especially since he has the capacity to triumph against all types of bulls. The triumph in Castellon and the ears obtained in Valencia, Seville and for his first Paseo de la San Isidro were just an appetizer before the consecration in Madrid on June 7. He obtained a second « Puerta Grande » in Las Ventas and won the Triumphant and Best Faena Awards at the most prestigious Feria in the world to succeed Sébastien Castella in the list of winners. The horn blow in Pamplona during his triumph last month did not slow down his momentum since he cut five ears of the Victorino Martin a few days later during a solo against the Victorino Martin at the Linea de la Concepcion. The Sevillian bullfighter will be the great discovery of this Feria 2024 and he will make the paseo in Béziers with the ambition of winning a place in France worthy of his new status in Spain.

Daniel Luque's technique and mastery impress

Since his triumphant solo in Bayonne in 2019 where he cut off four ears and a tail, Daniel Luque has established himself as a reference and a pillar of French ferias. Present as a phenomenon since the novilladas, the kid from Gerena in the suburbs of Seville immediately rose to the figuras category the day after his alternative in Nîmes in 2007. If the maestro already knew everything about bullfighting, the man needed to mature and he fell from the best cartels and his number of bullfights, around sixty, was halved in the mid-2010s. Relaunched by Robert and Jean-François Pilès, the Sevillian has been lighting up French arenas for five years and his technical and personal maturity is evident on a daily basis. Because Daniel Luque is one of the rare bullfighters capable of shining in front of all types of encastes (origins of breeding) and the precision of his muleta and his sense of lidia allow him to shine in front of an exceptional percentage of bulls from which he has the capacity to extract all the qualities. A sort of Ponce in the Andalusian style who always knows how to fight in favor of his opponent to favor his expression.

Thus, for three years, he has been the undisputed number one in France and his only one against six of Dax went down in history when he cut seven ears and a tail of the La Quinta while pardoning a specimen. He will also return to this breeding for a solo during the Feria des Vendanges in Nîmes. A true idol in the South-West, he pardoned a Victoriano del Rio in Arles in 2022 and multiplied the triumphs last year in France (Nîmes, Dax, Arles, twice Mont-de-Marsan). The status of leader of the bullfighter apoderated by Jean-Baptiste Jalabert has now crossed the Pyrenees with two Portes du Prince in Seville in 2022 and 2024 and two two-eared bullfights in 2023 in his city. Last year, he was the winner of the “golden ear”, the bullfighting “golden ball”. This dynamic has even managed to worry Roca Rey, the boss of the Escalafon, who abuses his power to close the doors to him and refuses to confront him. Here again, Daniel Luque has shown his new maturity because he has been diplomatic in the face of this injustice. But the specialists are not mistaken, the reference muleta in hand is more Sevillian than Peruvian.

A novillada of Margé in the morning

For this 2024 edition, the Béziers arenas will offer two novilladas without picador and a novillada piquée during three mornings (11am). This Friday, the erales (two-year-old bulls) of Monteilles are scheduled for the first non-piquée. On the poster, we will find José Maria Rosado (Ronda), Abel Rodriguez (Castellon), Victor Clauzel (Arles) and Nicolas Cortijo (Albacete).

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