On learning in June of the sudden retirement of Enrique Ponce - the man who had fought most corridas in 2020 - few people would have forecast that Morante de la Puebla would be heading the matador’s escalafón come the end of the 2021 season, or the manner in which he would achieve it. While Morante has been one of a very few matadors to generate high levels of expectation in advance of a corrida, all too often in the past he has played safe, choosing the most ‘commercial’ ganaderías and giving up early on when his bulls have presented challenges, often earning broncas as a result. And he has never been one to chase corrida numbers.

In 2021, however, the sevillano had a very different temporada. An early decision to face miuras in Sevilla’s Feria de Abril (later postponed to September) initially appeared as a typical one-off ‘gesture’ by a figura. However, before long Morante was making it known that he was “bored” with his usual commercial fare and wanted to experience different encastes. Becoming his own manager after dispensing with the services of la casa Matilla after their Vistalegre San Isidro fiasco doubtless helped him in this regard. By the end of the temporada, Morante had appeared in 49 festejos (way ahead of the runner-up, Andrés Roca Rey, on 37) and faced 11 different encastes. Some 78% of the 104 bulls he faced over the course of the season were either pure Domecq or containing Domecq blood, but for the aficionado it was his performances with other encastes - Núñez, Santacoloma, Atanasio, Vázquez, Murube-Urquijo, Miura and Vega-Villar - that held most interest.

His encerrona with the Vázquez bulls of Prieto de la Cal at El Puerto de Santa María was the fracaso that many (including this writer) predicted, but elsewhere, as the season progressed, there were successes - an ear from an Ana Romero bull at Calatayud, another from a murube at Lucena, two from Castillejo de Huebra bulls at Navalcarnero, an ear from a galache at Salamanca, another from an alcurrucén in Madrid’s Las Ventas and an ear from a bull of San Pelayo in his closing corrida at Arenas de San Pedro, as well as several ovations following incomplete performances that had nevertheless contained moments of inspiration. His biggest triumphs, his two-ear faenas (he even cut a tail at Linares from a juanpedro), still came with domecqs, but, in opting to face these other encastes, Morante added to his status as a figura. His magnificent two-ear triumph in Sevilla’s San Miguel (with another juanpedro) plus the ear won in Las Ventas - his first award there for 12 years - were testament to the improvement in his form this season.

Forced to concentrate on more unusual fare (even his domecq opponents involved 19 different ganaderías), Morante appeared to grow in confidence as the temporada developed, his toreo becoming more relaxed and spontaneous, the matador smiling more often and willing to spend time looking to get the best out of his animals, rather than giving up early and collecting the estoque, as was his wont. Even when an animal was not going to give him success (as was the case with his second alcurrucén at Las Ventas), he now took the time to clearly demonstrate to spectators that that was the case before opting for the sword.

This was a temporada of supreme development for José Antonio Morante, and he fully deserved the award of Spain’s national prize for tauromaquia, determined by the Culture Ministry at the season’s end. The question now is what will he choose to do in 2022 - return to his old ways or keep treading the path he found in 2021? Aficionados will be hoping he will keep facing a variety of encastes and continue his toreo from where he left off this year.

Another matador of the year

While Morante de la Puebla deserved all the plaudits he received for his 2021 season, Emilio de Justo also had a superb temporada, cementing his position as a matador who should be a regular component of any feria. He finished third in the escalafón with 36 appearances, and may well have gained more if the Spring ferias of Sevilla and Las Ventas had taken place.

His performances in both those plazas later in the year were sensational and led to two puerta grande exits in Madrid, while Sevilla (where he had just one corrida - a mano a mano victorinada with Antonio Ferrera) very nearly saw him leave the plaza through the Puerta del Príncipe. While there is still room for improvement with the extremeño’s capework, he is magnificent with the muleta, unafraid to give the bull advantages in the faena, and a terrific swordsman.

Emilio maintained his standing in France with strong performances at Dax, Bayonne and Arles, had a bull of La Ventana del Puerto indultado at Guijuelo, and, after a superb opening to his 2021 campaign at Almendralejo, when he cut four ears and a tail, produced many two-ear faenas, including at Leganés, Badajoz, Santander, Almería, Illescas and Aranda de Duero.

Once again, he was prepared to share the cartel with anyone (although there were indications he is still marginalised by the established figuras) and also face a variety of ganaderías - domecqs in the main, but also albaserradas in the form of bulls from Adolfo and Victorino Martín, núñezs from Alcurrucén, santacolomas from La Quinta and Rehuelga, atanasios from Puerto de San Lorenzo and murubes from San Pelayo.

Other matadors who made an impact

Young Andrés Roca Rey was successful in the sense of continuing to fill the plaza to its maxium capacity wherever he went. He also cut more ears (79) than any other matador in 2021. For someone with such pulling power, though, it was disappointing that he only cut single ears in the 1st class plazas of Córdoba, Málaga and Sevilla (in the latter instance, on two of three afternoons): his showings in France were, arguably, better, as testified by three ears at Dax on his first appearance there in August, and a further three in Arles (where the Peruvian triumphed in a mano a mano with Alejandro Talavante) in September.

Elsewhere, the Peruvian achieved triumphant actuaciones at Aranjuez, Brihuega, Zamora, Castellón, Burgos, Algeciras, Palencia, Ronda, Logroño (where he was magnificent), Roquestas de Mar, Úbeda and Requena. The Úbeda appearance (a mano a mano with Juan Ortega in which a total of 11 ears and a tail were cut) included an indulto of a bull of Núñez del Cuvillo. Andrés stuck almost entirely to animals of Domecq heritage, departing from this formula only for a much-heralded encounter with an adolfo at Arles, a Puerto de San Lorenzo animal at Zamora and laquintas at Santander. There is yet to be any indication that Roca Rey’s new manager, Roberto Domínguez, is having any influence on his toreo, but clearly the Spanish and French publics in general prefer excitement over and above artistry - how long this continues to be the case, remains to be seen.

If the new type of figura is a matador prepared to take on, and succeed with, a number of encastes, then 2021 saw Daniel Luque take a major step towards achieving that status. Finishing fifth in the escalafón after 33 corridas, the sevillano achieved important triumphs at Vistalegre, Aranjuez (twice), Castellón, Huelva, El Puerto de Santa María, Dax (twice), Gijón, Bayonne and Las Ventas - and would have won an ear at Sevilla’s La Maestranza too if the president had obeyed a majority petition. The triumphs involved a range of bulls - murubes, albaserradas and santacolomas as well as domecqs - Daniel having got used to such varied fare after his years in the wilderness. Now in his 14th season as a matador de toros, he’s been a technically strong torero for many years. What was different about 2021 was that he transmitted his character, his calm determination to make the best of things, too.

Another veteran enjoying perhaps his best-ever temporada was Diego Urdiales, 11th in the escalafón after 24 corridas. The riojano showed well at the Vistalegre San Isidro and followed that performance up with triumphs at Burgos, Santander, Mont de Marsan, Gijón, Alfaro and Colmenar Viejo, amongst other plazas. But of particular pleasure to him would have been his two-ear faena in Sevilla during its San Miguel feria - a feat that will hopefully lead to other Andalucian rings contracting the matador.

Juan Ortega is arguably the matador who has benefitted most from the last two virus-affected seasons - in 2019, he was 41st in the escalafón with 12 festejos: at the end of 2021, he’d risen to eighth in the rankings and 31 corridas. He has ridden the new wave of interest in artistic toreo and temple. In his seventh season as a matador, the 30-year-old began well with single ears at Leganés and Vistalegre. Two-ear faenas occurred rarely, being limited to appearances at El Puerto de Santa María, Alcalá de Henares and Úbeda (his most successful afternoon, with four ears won), but, although he only cut one ear from seven bulls at Sevilla’s San Miguel, he came away from that feria with his status very much heightened, the band playing twice during his capework and his muleta passes entrancing too. His big weakness is with the sword, as three avisos at Alicante testified. Apart from two afternoons when he faced murubes and one with Bañuelos bulls, all his corridas involved ‘commercial’ domecqs.

24-year-old Ginés Marín was the most successful of matadors who have taken the alternativa relatively recently. Finishing 12th in the escalafón with 22 corridas, the jerezano’s big triumph came at the season’s end with a beautifully-measured faena to an alcurrucén leading to an exit through the puerta grande of Las Ventas. Prior to that, he’d had substantial triumphs at Leganés, Santander, Medina del Campo, San Fernando, Villarejo de Salvanés, Las Rozas and various plazas in his ‘home’ province of Badajoz. Showing his versatility, he also cut an ear from a miura at Morón de la Frontera in his opening corrida of the temporada. That Las Ventas triumph should see him become a feria regular in 2022.

Manuel Escribano (13th in the escalafón with 22 corridas) cut an ear from a victorino in Las Ventas near the beginning of this slow-starting season and won two ears off a miura in Sevilla as the season neared its end. Apart from a corrida at Vic-Fezensac, those were his only appearances outside 3rd class rings, and the sevillano argued that his triumph in La Maestranza should result in his restoration to the main feria circuit. He had a very successful August afternoon at Villarrobledo that included the indulto of a bull of Espartaco’s ganadería, and cut further ears and tails in October at Villamanrique (from a núñez) and Niebla (from a Buenavista domecq).

Another matador with a legitimate claim to be featured frequently on the main feria circuit after a strong 2021 temporada is Sergio Serrano. Finishing 27th in the escalafón after 11 corridas (nine more than he had in either 2020 or 2019), the albaceteño also cut an ear in the June victorinada at Las Ventas, with several commentators arguing he should have been given a place in the Feria de Otoño as a result. There was no reappearance in the capital, but Sergio did taste success elsewhere, with particularly strong afternoons at Manzanares and Munera (both afternoons with Conde de Mayalde bulls), Tarazona de la Mancha (with murubes) and at Albacete (with victorinos).

With just seven corridas to his name, Alejandro Marcos (48th in the escalafón) had his busiest season since he was a novillero in 2016. The Salamancan’s main success was in his home feria, where he was brought onto the bill to face galaches at the request of Morante de la Puebla and cut two ears after a superb performance on the last bull, gaining a second showing in the feria. Prior to that, he had gone out on shoulders at Arévalo, Cantalejo (where he had a garcigrande indultado) and the Cantabrian ring of Polaciones. The 27-year-old has his sights on an afternoon in Las Ventas in 2022 to propel him onto the main stage.

The Copa Chenel winner, Fernando Adrián (74th in the escalafón with three corridas), will also be hoping he has done enough in 2021 to have a busier temporada next year. After topping the novilleros’ escalafón in 2011, up to this year Fernando only managed eight contracts in his seven years as a matador de toros. All three of this year’s appearances were rounds of the Copa Chenel competition. He won four ears off bulls of Los Maños and Montealto at the opening round at Valdetorres del Jarama; two ears from a bull of Zacarías Moreno at the Valdemorillo semi-final; and an ear from an adolfo and a further two ears from a bull of José Vázquez in the final at Cadalso de los Vidrios.

A mystery man

Finally, occasionally temporadas throw up someone who comes out of the blue and achieves an impressive number of corridas together with promising results. This year’s ‘mystery man’ is the albaceteño Mario Sotos (15th in the escalafón). The 29-year-old managed to take the alternativa in the coronavirus-ravaged temporada of 2020 at Castellar de Santiago in September with Calita as padrino and Fernando Tendero as testigo, cutting three ears and appearing once more before the season’s end. His 2021 temporada saw him cut 50 ears and two tails from 20 corridas, all in 3rd class rings mainly in the provinces of Ciudad Real, Albacete and Cuenca. His final corrida at Lora del Río saw the indulto of a bull of José Luis Pereda, Sotos winning symbolic trophies. Achieving a decent temporada de rodaje in current circumstances is no mean feat and the matador will be hoping to build on this in 2022.

(In the next part of this season review, we will look at a number of matadors who had a regular or disappointing temporada in 2021.)