"Is there no violence in hockey or boxing? It's in our nature. We have become predominant in this planet because of our violent, competitive nature. So I see nothing wrong for violence as part of the spectator sport, most of them are."

 

Now retired from the ring, Santos Senior spends his days training his son. In the lush tropics of central Mexico, Rancho La Herradura is an ideal training ground for an aspiring bullfighter.

 

In these fields what accounts for man and bull is stamina. Only courage carries a higher value. Only the hardest charging animals are selected to fight. Young Gaston has to learn their behavior.

 

Gaston won't face the bull alone. Matadors fight on foot and on their own but an equestrian bullfighter can rely on a four-footed partner. Purebred Lusitano horses make first-class fighters. Naturally fearful, horses must get years of training before they can dance in the path of a charging bull. The smallest mistake can mean the difference between life and death.

 

In the southern state of Yucatán, a bullfight draws thousands. But this is more than just death for the sake of spectacle. It is a celebration of valor and artistry in the face of danger. It's a family event. Young and old come to watch their heroes. Some will cheer for their favorite bullfighter, others for the bulls.

 

Every time a bullfighter enters the ring, he knows that it could be his last. Since 1900 nearly 100 men have died fighting bulls. The bull is strong. His spears get shorter and shorter. With each pass Gaston must reach over those deadly horns and jab the point precisely between the shoulder blades. Until now the spears have only caused flash wounds, enraging the bull.

 

The drama's climax is the dead spear. A bullfighter has no greater duty than a clean kill. He has two chances to do so from horseback. The blow should be quick and exact straight through to the heart. Gaston needs to dispatch his animal at the set time. If he fails, attendance will take it away and slaughter it, a death without dignity and a great change to the bullfighter. The clock takes on and still the bull stands bloody but unrelenting. Gaston is running out of time. He's had his tries from horseback. Now he must try to end this on foot.

 

Gaston drives the blade horn, a moral ward to a bull that fought the good fight, but could not win the battle. Death with honor is still bittersweet.

 

Another day in the ring, another contest between life and death. Gaston has proven himself and upheld his father's legend today. But his time in the spotlight is only starting in a country where men in his line of work become heroes and bullfight is a national pastime no matter how ardent its critic is.