A 1,100 pound bull named Malacara leaped over a barrier on Sunday during the Bullfighting Fair in Murcia, Spain.
Video footage taken by an event attendee showed the bull setting its sights on the matador from across the arena before charging, the New York Post reported.
The matador got to safety, but the bull leaped over the safety barrier and landed upright on the other side. However, another low wall prevented it from running into the crowd.
A witness said women in the front seats nearby were almost gored, adding “The animal was out of control. It was extremely lucky that nobody was injured.”
A still image of the incident showed the moment the bull leaped over the barrier and came straight at the person recording:
According to Murcia Today, the bull cleared the barrier two times during the match but no one was injured in either incident.
A similar incident happened in 2013 when a bull broke its horn as it ran into the wall of an arena, then jumped over the barrier twice, Animal Planet reported:
“Bullfighting is a centuries-old Spanish tradition but is controversial – with critics claiming it’s animal cruelty. Matadors and fans have been injured at such events,” the Post article said.
According to the Britannica website:
In centuries past, clerics assailed bullfighting for degrading the work ethic and diverting public attention away from the church and prayer. Many observers—from Renaissance popes and Bourbon kings to contemporary animal-rights activists—have seen bullfighting as barbaric, as a perversion of the Christian principle of animal stewardship.
In April, Breitbart News reported the legendary “King of Bullfighters” suffered a severe rectal wound during a match in Seville with a bull.
Matador Morante de la Puebla was performing at the Maestranza arena when he was gored as the crowd watched in horror:
After he underwent surgery, the bullfighter said “I was in immense pain, felt a lot of fear because I saw the bull had grabbed me and, well, I thought I was bleeding.”