The unmistakable trait of his personality was stolen from the authentic old Victorino the day the dentist removed his gold tooth. Everything is too long ago. When the golden pineapple flashed in his mischievous smile, it was that a bullfighter was passing them purple with one of his chaste red creatures. The next act consisted of inhaling a huge puff of smoke from a gigantic veguero with airs of satisfaction and looking to the sides of any of those squares that, to claim their name, overflowed in the 80s and 90s as saying: «With there is no one who can my bulls ». Eternal glory for the wrestlers who could .

Victorino Martín Andrés was a lot of Victorino as prizes of the importance of the Gold Medal of Fine Arts, the Madrid or the Bullfighting National recognized. The personality of the Victorians monopolized half a century of bullfighting to erect its owner and creator as the guardian of the caste , the rancher of the town, the highest grossing, most valued and mediatic.

In the 80s he was crowned king of the pasture with his image far from the stereotype of Andalusian gentleman, his indomitable language and his skills as an innate communicator who sparked sparks in an inbred system and asleep in comfort. In their domains there were no bullfighters' vendors, nor temple desecration merchants, nor did anyone dare to send more than the rancher in their product, in their ankle creatures -the ones that gave them fame- or bravely tempered -the ones that contributed category- to the command of the flights of whoever was capable of deciphering the codes for which the personalities of Saltillo, Santa Coloma and Albaserrada bear the seal of Victorino and the hallmark of humiliation . Almost three years after his death he is still remembered.

The myth was hatched from a fight that was born in the times of the Cainite civil war that bled Spain. Between cows and goats, old Victorino grew up in Galapagar as a mischievous and mountainous boy . The grandfather Venancio amassed a capital with the bovine and goat treatment until taking over almost 40 small farms, which he still distributed in life among his five children. The summer of 36 devastated the supposed peace of the Second Republic and the militias took their father for a walk to Paracuellos ... Victorino's war started in orphanhood.

From a beef and milk breeder, dealer, butcher and moruchero to an essential brave farmer in the History of Bullfighting. The genesis of Victorino as a registered trademark was born in 1960 with the exclusive purchase of Escudero Calvo's albaserradas , which were walking towards the slaughterhouse. His providential appearance turned a car for the scrap into a Formula 1.

The battle between Manuel Benítez 'El Cordobés' and Palomo Linares for a run from Galache in San Isidro in 1968 is used by Victorino Martín, still an unknown but ready as Rommel, to make his first great foray into the media: he offers a free run from Cinqueña (in the time of the utrero) and announces that he will donate the price of meat to the poor. Marketing would call it now. There is no answer, but it shakes the conscience of the hobby. That same year of '68 the stallion Hospiciano ambushes Victorino Martín in the middle of the field and hits him eight goring that seriously affects the left kidney and lung. That season Victorino entered the spirit of Las Ventas on August 18 with a bullfight. The Paleto de Galapagar triumphs with a show of pure adrenaline. 'The fighting bull', as the fighting bull is called in France.

Every bullfighter who has fought victories in class places makes a special mark on the rapier's pommel, like a notch for an enemy fallen in the colt's cult. From Andrés Vázquez onwards, authentic specialists in the livestock of the 'A crowned' succeed each other: Ruiz Miguel or Esplá, who together with José Luis Palomar composed the poster of the so-called Corrida del Siglo on June 1, 1982, in full exaltation of 'Naranjito', the fist and the rose. TVE put the icing on the cake. Victorino came out on his shoulders. He already knew what it was like to open that portico of glory with Miguel Márquez on May 18, 1976: "The first goal of the afternoon was pointed out by Victorino when he filled the square to the flag (...) More than one rancher teeth grind. The massive psychosis that undoubtedly exists in Madrid with this currency hurts them. But, my lords, you were in time to do what he did in due course: face all the bullfighting, play the fan card, support the campaigns of independent critics »(Zabala Portolés). And milestones and proper names continued to be gathered: Ortega Cano came to pardon Madrid in July '82 , Velador , the only pardon for the life of a bull in Las Ventas. And so half a century that, like so many afternoons, he repeatedly waved his name: "Vic-to-ri-no, Vic-to-rino, Vic-to-ri-no!".

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

Know more

  • the Cordovan
  • Spain
  • France
  • Galapagar
  • Madrid
  • Bulls

History The Cordovan, the wolf smile and the left without stops of a universal 'crack'

AnniversaryPaco Camino: "There are times to adopt dogs and abandon parents"

HistoryThe Caesar of bullfighting that ruled the world: from death in Palmira to the sky of Madrid