Feria de Nîmes: farewell from Enrique Ponce with sweet and sour flavors

MILIB20240517 Midi Libre – MIKAEL ANISSET

Talavante a dessiné quelques séries de sa main gauche unique. Midi Libre – MIKAEL ANISSET

Un David Galvan combattif a coupé une oreille du dernier toro. Midi Libre – MIKAEL ANISSET

The lot of Juan Pedro Domecq, with an unattractive size, disappointed and never produced the expected game. If the emotion of Enrique Ponce's farewell will remain etched and the desire of Talavante and Galvan to salute, the overall results of the opening bullfight are very disappointing.

If the "no hay billetes" was not displayed in front of the arenas, 11,000 spectators came for the return of Enrique Ponce for the opening of the Feria de Pentecost. Positive attendance for a Friday in Nîmes.

Unfortunately, the celebrations did not live up to the magnificent career of the maestro of Chiva in a bullfight where boredom reigned most of the time. The fault of Juan Pedro Domecq's toros with their uncertain and inconsistent size, and the horns which are not very offensive for the first arena in France. No bullfighter has really broken to allow the triumph of the bullfighters, most of them due to lack of breed and transmission. Others due to lack of funds where initial illusions were quickly disappointed. Not to mention the tercios of symbolic spades where only the last toro was used during the first meeting.

Because the results of four ears are most flattering and do not reflect the lack of interest in the six fights. Outside of the context of Ponce's farewell, a trophy for Talavante and, possibly, a second for Galvan would have been sufficient.

One last ear offered to Ponce 

This opening of Feria therefore marked the return to the ruedos of Enrique Ponce and his farewell to the arenas of Nîmes, of which he wrote several pages of history. He started in front of a Juan Pedro Domecq who was as poorly built as he was armed, who showed the same signs of weakness and lack of race as the opening toro. After two discreet first tercios, Juan Pedro Domecq showed himself to be a willing collaborator and without difficulty for the maestro, but his blandness, his lack of strength and his inability to charge from below never allowed a connection between the maestro and the audience. Ponce ended an emotionless therapist faena with a misaligned sword.

The second Juan Pedro Domecq of the Valencian hardly shone more during the first tercios. He created an illusion during the first series of the faena and the entire audience was already dreaming of one last concerto by the maestro. But hopes were extinguished in the next sequence because the toro moved without difficulty but with fatal blandness. Then began a faena filled with nostalgia where Enrique Ponce declined his best arabesques with toreo templé while playing the belt in a faena "Canada Dry" . It looked like Ponce, but it wasn’t Ponce! The poncinas finals offered a last moment of sharing with the public but the immense figure could no longer face such adversity.

At times, we felt the maestro's natural difficulties in finding the sitioafter three years of retirement. After a clever and poorly positioned blow, the presidency acceded to the public's desire to offer a final trophy to the figure. The two final vueltas were a good moment of sharing and emotion between the spectators and their favorite actor.

Two generous ears for Talavante 

For his part, Alejandro Talavante, recited the variety of his repertoire from the reception of his first toro on the cape with faroles. This first Juan Pedro deceived the spade by hitting hard on the petowhen meeting the horse without then working under the shoe. The faena started off with a bang with an explosive sequence on her knees but the brave immediately died out due to lack of depth at the end of the first series despite the efforts of the Spaniard. A faena which ended with difficulty with Talavante in great difficulty with the sword.

The second Juan Pedro de Talavante was the most corpulent but lacked neck which would then condition his difficulties in following the muleta from below. After a good start with statuaries, Talavante managed to mask some of the toro's shortcomings with his usual inspirations and his left hand as precise and magical as ever. His commitment and his will were praised by the public, especially in the finale close to the horns and he concluded the fight with a sincere blow. Two ears fell off the palco: one too many!

Galvan's effort to snatch a trophy

David Galvan opened the fair to celebrate his confirmation of an alternative in front of a toro with trapio and armor far from the requirement of a first category arena. Noble, collaborative, but extremely bland and lacking in strength, the Andalusian could recite a repertoire where aesthetics took precedence over the substance which more closely resembled a living room toreo session than a real fight. Galvan accompanied Juan Pedro Domecq gently in a style reminiscent of his alternative godfather. The conclusion turned out to be chaotic.

Galvan closed the bullfight with the best toro of the day (let's say the least bad!) who came out with a lot of gas, greeting him with two largas on his knees to claim his thirst for triumph. After a good sting, the only one of the bullfight, the Juan Pedro attacked the muleta with promptitude, class and a beautiful gallop. The Andalusian attacked his faena with two cambiadas and two well-designed right-handed series without ever imposing loads on him from below: certainly to spare his forces because the toro was clearly losing pace at the end of these initial exchanges. Little by little, the Juan Pedro put on the handbrake, and Galvan worked on the wire of the horns and crossing himself as much as possible, to extract the last loads and the hope of cutting off an ear. A whole sword allowed him to achieve his ambitions and a handkerchief fell from the palco.

Nevertheless, the 11,000 spectators left the arena thinking that the bullfighting saying was once again respected: "corrida d’ expectation, bullfight of disappointment.

The bullfight file

Arènes de N&icir;mes.

11,000 spectators.

Toros by Juan Pedro Domecq.

Enrique Ponce: hello after advice and ear after advice.

Alejandro Talavante: silence and two ears.

David Galvan: hello after advice and ear after advice.