This is the moment Spanish bullfighter Paco Pena suffered a savage defeat after a raging bull gored a seven centimetre gash in his left thigh.
Horrified onlookers at the San Sebastian Big Week saw the veteran banderillero fall to the ground as the animal gored him last night.
Pena was tossed around the ring before medics dashed in to save him.
Last night Pena was being treated for his wounds at the bullring’s infirmary and was said to be in a stable condition.
Pena had been competing in the bullring in San Sebastian, Basque Country, northern Spain, as a banderillero - whose job it is to weaken the bull by stabbing it in the shoulders with small barbed spears before a matador kills the animal.
After successfully spearing one animal, he was gored by his second bull.
The competition has already seen matadors Mark and Ivan Leandro Fandino defeated in rough and complicated bullfights.
Bullfighting is one of Northern Spain’s most controversial traditions. It is a major draw for tourism but also demonised by animal rights activists who call for the sport to be banned.
The Catalonia region of Spain, which includes Barcelona, banned bullfighting early this year, the first mainland region to do so.
