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Pablo Hermoso de Mendoza during
and after his final fight in Mexico Rejoneadores, matadors who fight on horseback, must combine grace, power, horsemanship and patience. One of the best exponents of the genre, Spain’s Pablo Hermoso de Mendoza, bid farewell to Mexico on Sunday with a thrilling bullfight in the Plaza Monumental of Aguascalientes, during which he was awarded two ears from each of the two bulls he fought. In a packed arena, Hermoso de Mendoza showed off his cherished trademarks — having his steed dance in place, paw the earth and turn circles in front of the charging bull. But this skillful rejoneador added a few special touches Sunday, culminating in taking two banderillas in his hands (a rejoneador customarily uses one at a time), and successfully planting them in the bull’s back. Hermoso de Mendoza is largely responsible for cultivating the current interest in el rejoneo in Mexico. He arrived here last year with a stable of nine superbly trained horses and has performed all over the country. The mounted version of bullfighting is generally associated with Portugal, where it is still highly popular. The sport originally began in both Spain and Portugal as training for fighting Moors. After the reconquest, Spanish and Portuguese noblemen began lancing wild bulls for entertainment, but the Spaniards stopped around the 1700s because too many people were getting hurt. However, the Portuguese continued the tradition, substituting the lances for short harpoons called rejones. El rejoneo is enriched by the use of two styles of costume — usanza española and usanza portuguesa — Spanish and Portuguese style suits. True to the nature of the people, the Spanish outfit is minimal and conservative, and consists of a dark waistcoat (usually brown or gray), brown leather chaps and a broad, straight-brimmed hat. The Portuguese usanza is more flamboyant. It consists of a brightly colored overcoat, white pants, patent leather boots and a three- cornered hat. Rejoneadores tend to wear whichever of the two strikes their fancy on a particular day, but a few show trademark preferences. Hermoso de Mendoza, for example, is always seen in the Spanish uniform. El rejoneo uses an arsenal of lances and darts. There is the rejon de castigo (the punishing lance), which is a spear with a tip that removes to reveal a flag; the rejon de muerte (the killing lance), which the rejoneador uses to finish his job; the banderilla, which is the traditional hand-held dart used in the bullring; and the banderilla chica, a dart only inches long. Usually, rejoneadors only use banderillas chicas when they are confident, since they must be literally on top of the bull to make them effective. Their use is often a final blow before the rejon de muerte. When Mendoza picked up the rejon de muerte during his last turn Sunday night, the crowd booed him. He trotted back to ringside, traded the blade for four short darts, and rode out again to raucous applause. It seemed the crowd was rooting for the bull, since putting off its death meant that Pedro Hermoso de Mendoza would have to fight in Mexico a few minutes longer. |
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