He along with the great Joselito shared the throne of Spanish bullfighting.
Though the complete opposite in style to the graceful elegance of Joselito he was equally successful in the ring, some may argue that he was even more of a success out of the ring, because he managed to live well into old age,and become a great ambassador for bullfighting , elevating them to the higher levels in Spanish society.
In an act of defiance he cut of his Coleta (Pigtail worn by bullfighters) that marked them apart.
This was quite a statement at the time. Up until this point the Matador, although greatly respected and even revered, never quite entered that other corrida,( The ring of the upper classes.)
Belmonte certainly had his own style of bullfighting, in boxing terms some may say he was a brawler rather than a boxer but this would be an unfair description of his technique, for he was on of the greatest and most imaginative bullfighters of all time, his style of fighting was directly linked to his physical makeup.
It is easy to be graceful and elegant when you are blessed with height, but when you are short, you must use whatever method keeps you alive in the ring.
As for his opinion of the bull itself. He didn't hold any great belief in the widely held view that the bull had its own territory in the ring. He thought the bull too stupid to stake such a claim.
After retiring from bullfighting, Juan Belmont'e became a successful bull breeder, living well into old age he did what many bulls failed to do. No longer able to do in old age the things he could do as a youth.
When told of the death of his great friend Ernest Hemingway, and how he took his life, his reaction was.
" Well done Ernisto my friend."
He took his own life in the same way, with a single shot to his temple as did his great friend Ernest Hemingway .
