Spectators let out screams when an enraged, half-tonne bull launched itself towards the crowd at a Spanish arena.
The six-year-old animal, named Malacara, had been provoked by matadors when it suddenly turned and charged at one of the performers.
As the matador pressed himself against the wooden barrier, the bull swerved left, cleared the safety fence and burst into the spectator area.
Video captured the 508kg bull hurtling towards horrified people in the front row, including a spectator who was recording the unfolding chaos.
The spectators escaped injury only because a concrete wall stood in front of them at the Plaza de Toros de Murcia in Murcia, Spain, on September 20.
Juan Perez, a shocked visitor seated several rows back, said: ‘I saw it with my own eyes, the bull jumping over the fence into the crowd.
‘The animal was completely out of control. It was incredibly fortunate that nobody was hurt. There were women sitting in those seats, and they came dangerously close to being gored by the bull’s horns.’
The footage shows the bull racing along the edge of the ring after landing among the spectators.
Officials eventually guided him back onto the sand so the bout could continue. The bull was later killed, in keeping with the local tradition.
An official said: ‘The bullfighter, Duarte Fernandes, used a killing lance, the rejon de muerte, before a verduguillo, a short sword, was used to deliver the final blow. This was needed to finish the bull.
A furious half-tonne bull sent spectators screaming when it leapt towards the crowd at a Spanish arena
Six-year-old Malacara was being goaded by matadors when he abruptly charged at one of the performers
The bull swerved as the matador crouched beside the wooden fence, then cleared the safety barrier
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The 508kg animal flew towards terrified front-row spectators, one of whom was filming the incident
‘The crowd called for the bullfighter to be given an ear, but the presiding judge refused. Fernandes was awarded an ovation instead.’
According to the plaza’s official report, Malacara was the sixth and final bull of the afternoon at the mounted bullfight that brought the Murcia Bullfighting Fair to a close.
Officials also reported that Malacara had twice jumped into the exit alley during the same event.
The bull came from the Los Espartales ranch and had been assigned to Portuguese mounted bullfighter, known as a rejoneador, Duarte Fernandes.
The dramatic escape was not the only recent incident in which a bull has entered a spectator area.
In July, four spectators suffered serious injuries after a rampaging bull leapt into the crowd during a bullfight at a festival in Colombia.
The rampage took place at a ‘Corraleja’ event, a traditional bull festival where the animal is released into the ring and members of the public can dangerously tease it.
Video footage showed the bull seconds after it was released chasing people in the ring before it jumped over a tall red fence and into a large crowd.
Cheers of excitement quickly turned into screams of panic as people fled the stands, with some even jumping into the ring to escape.
One woman was hit and trampled by the bull as she tried to run away around the stand.
A fearless man then grabbed the bull by the tail, allowing others to quickly escape.
Bizarrely, as the carnage unfolds, a matador calmly walks across the bullring brandishing his red cape in an apparent attempt to get the bull’s attention.