Paco Velázquez

Bullfighter Paco Velázquez: biography, professional career, awards and triumphs, taurine vocation

Debut without picadors: 20 February 2007, at the Campo Pequeno bullring (Lisbon).

Debut with picadors: 2 March 2011, at the Plaza de Toros in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco (Mexico).

Presentation in Madrid: 20 August 2023, at the Plaza de Las Ventas, Madrid.

Alternative: 31 July 2022, in Huelva, Spain.

Born in Riachos, in the heart of Santarém (Portugal), on 23 December 1990, Paco Velázquez grew up surrounded by horses, dehesas and the fighting bull. This childhood, marked by the nobility of the bull and the elegance of horsemanship, guided him towards a vocation that over time became destiny: tauromachy.

From an early age, he sought to refine his craft in Iberian bullfighting schools, where he mastered the cape and the muleta, while also learning the art of horsemanship. This rare dual training opened the way for him as a versatile torero, capable of moving spectators both on foot in the arena and from horseback.

His first major step before the public came on 20 February 2007 at Campo Pequeno in Lisbon, where he appeared as a becerrista. That day was more than a performance: it was a declaration of intent, the arrival of a young man determined to carve his name into the history of bullfighting.

In 2011, Mexico became his proving ground, where he faced more demanding novillos and consolidated his standing as a novillero with picadors. Years later, on 31 July 2022, he reached a decisive milestone: the alternative as a professional rejoneador, a ceremony that confirmed his artistic maturity and his place among the cavaleiros who honour Portuguese tradition.

His style is distinguished by composure before the bull, the search for rhythm and purity of line, whether with the muleta or from horseback. He does not seek easy artifice, but rather the truth of bullfighting: those moments when the arena falls silent and emotion becomes eternal.

Today, Paco Velázquez is one of Portugal’s most promising figures on the international scene, with appearances in Portugal, Spain, France and the Americas. A bullfighter who embodies the bridge between tradition and the future of tauromachy.

Experience the art of Paco Velázquez live: book your tickets now and witness the bravery, purity and passion of a bullfighter forged between horses and dehesas.