Absent from the Bayonne season like Sébastien Castella and Dorian Canton, who triumphed in 2022 in this plaza, Juan Leal wrote a letter to the attention of aficionados. The Arlesian wanting to express his feeling of injustice after his three ears last year.
If the presentation of the cartels of the Bayonne season was praised for its diversity, it was marked by the absence of Sébastien Castella after his extraordinary season 2023 (triple triumph in Madrid, Seville and Mexico) and that of the hope of southwest, Dorian Township.
But the most notable absence is that of Juan Leal who opened the big door again last year with Roca Rey by cutting off three of Garcigrande’s ears. These choices are discussed by many aficionados in particular with the organization of a mano a mano between Manuel Escribano and Borja Jimenez which could have opened a third position and the presence of the Spaniard Alejandra Mora who has never had success significant in France.
In this letter published in full below, Juan Leal expresses his feelings and gives certain details on the negotiations.
“Since the Bayonne cartels were published, I have continued to receive messages from friends, professionals and aficionados who do not understand my absence. Bayonne is one of my favorite arenas, where I signed in the recent years some of the most important triumphs of my career. I am also told that the rumor is that my artistic and economic pretensions were excessive, after my three consecutive big doors during the last three seasons.
Juan Leal “Bayonne never contacted me”
I therefore feel obliged to publicly clarify that at no time did the management of the Bayonne arenas contact me to discuss any commitment and therefore there was no negotiation. Not a single conversation or contact with my apoderado, thus erasing a triumph of three ears during the last feria with Andres Roca Rey, or the four exits in triumph on the five bullfights that I had to bullfight in Bayonne.
Bullfighting is based on unwritten moral and ethical rules. And it is often said that it is in France that this beautiful idea is best defended. Beyond particular interests, I fear, looking to the future, that these situations, as common as they are unfair in the world of bullfighting, will become more and more frequent in my country, which until recently was a example of legitimacy and independence for all.
We can only unfortunately note that Bayonne is not the only French arena where memory loses its most basic values. Many aficionados, I know, share this concern.
I want to thank here all those who, in recent hours, have shown me their support and friendship, and I hope to find them in an arena as soon as possible.”
