Morante's nod to the Osborne white bull at the Antoñete festival and Roca Rey's "no" to replace Cayetano in Santander.

Almost at the same time as a preview of the Autumn Fair with Morante de la Puebla at the helm and Roca Rey's absence was released, Roca Rey said "no" to the maestro's idea, floated from Paris, to replace Cayetano in Santander. The city's mayor, Gema Igual , had been delighted with the proposal, altruistic indeed, with his fees donated to a charity. José María Garzón had also listened to the offer with pleasure, but everything seemed to indicate, given recent events, with the season painted in the color of the Morante anthology , his Pamplona stronghold dedicated to the cause of the maestro from La Puebla, that the answer would be no. As there had been before to some soundings with Daniel Luque, nothing new in this case. Nor in others.

Pedro J. Marques, his agent, confirmed the refusal which, according to what Roca's mentor, Joserra Lozano, told Antonio Lorca in El País , was not a "no", but rather a "let's see what happens this afternoon", but we all know there are ways of saying no. What happened that afternoon was that El Cid gave him a thoroughbred with the Victorino bullfight and triumphed with absolute mastery with an excellent bull, and thus became the candidate. The Mexican novillero, Bruno Aloi, had also been mentioned as an alternative, winner of the Las Ventas night bullfighting competition and who is fighting today in Garlin (France). In the end, the card of El Cid, Juan Ortega and Roca Rey, with bulls from Domingo Hernández, is the definitive one.

Roca Rey's erratic strategy, beyond the less-than-stellar results at the major fairs, hasn't quite straightened out. Plans aren't coming together either inside or outside the bullring. From his distaste for Albert Serra's documentary, Tardes de soledad , to his (late) jump on the bandwagon, to his snub to Ayuso at the San Isidro poster gala, then redirected with an invitation to the Sandoval estate aired on social media with suggestive music, to his commitment to the Victorinos on this Santiago Day, a lineage that's stalling. His potential doesn't match his established image.

In front of him, Morante is leading a packed year with the Seville anthologies—four memorable afternoons—the conquest of Madrid and Pamplona, and a host of great afternoons culminating in his double on October 12 in Madrid , as EL MUNDO reported. For the morning festival he's organizing, with the ultimate goal of erecting a sculpture of Antoñete in Las Ventas, as he himself recounted in these pages back in May, he wants to pay homage to the legendary bullfight with Osborne's ensabanado bull, Atrevido, in 1966 in his Madrid bullring. And so, the maestro, a student of history and attentive to detail, has chosen two bulls from the Osborne ranch for the occasion to recall the unforgettable: Chenel's work with the white bull.

In the afternoon, he will fight the Garcigrande bullfight, with Fernando Robleño's farewell and the confirmation of Sergio Rodríguez, winner of the Chenel Cup. Morante, generous with bullfighting and history, puts no obstacles in the way.