"chutzpah"

He is the undisputed David Beckham of Spanish bullfighting, a daring heart-throb with an adoring female following. But like many A-list performers at the top of their game, Jose Tomas always faces the risk of a career-ending injury. Tomas, who earns a staggering £400,000 a fight, is Spain's highest-paid matador. But he certainly gave the crowd in Cordoba, in the south of the country, their money's worth when a raging, half-ton bull got the better of him in dramatic style in 2008.

The celebrity bullfighter had an incredibly lucky escape when the bull outfoxed the 32-year-old and tossed him into the air during his second fight of the day.

After crashing to the ground, Tomas was skewered by the bull's ferocious horns before being hurled skywards for a second time. Despite this being his second serious 'cornada', or goring, in under a month (he was hospitalised after a bullfight in Jerez just two weeks prior), the battered Tomas somehow managed to get back on his feet and kill the bull. In recognition of his extraordinary chutzpah, Tomas was rewarded with both ears and the tail of the bull and was later carried out of the ring on a collegue's shoulders - the customary reward for feats of great bravery.

For the complete story with photos showing the blood, click on the heading above.