Curro Vázquez and his son Fran spent 24 hours searching near the site of the fatal railway accident in Urda, Toledo, before Antonio was found dead. He had been travelling in carriage 8 of Renfe’s AVE, which struck an Iryo train stopped on the Madrid-Seville high-speed line on 28 October 2026. Railway Gazette identified the Renfe service as the 07:53 Madrid Atocha-Seville train, operated by Siemens Mobility Velaro trainset 103-206. The collision occurred near kilometre marker 118, about 120 kilometres from Madrid.
Vázquez was on his way to Seville to review the bulls selected for his client Pablo Aguado. The work reflected the care he brought to managing bullfighters, alongside his brother Curro and later with Fran.
His bond with Curro ran through his professional life. Together they were known as «los Vázquez» and managed bullfighters including Morante and Alejandro Talavante. Their paths divided in recent years, though not necessarily for good: Curro took charge of his nephew Cayetano Rivera Ordóñez’s career, while Antonio and Fran continued with Aguado.
They shared a traditional style of management, marked by attention to the bull and courtesy in their dealings. Aguado’s successes had given Vázquez particular pleasure, including the bullfighter’s appearance through the Puerta del Príncipe. Vázquez had also been moved by Curro’s performance at the festival organised by Morante de la Puebla in Las Ventas, and by the presentation of the National Bullfighting Award in the Senate.
Antonio had once hoped to become a bullfighter himself. He appeared as a novillero, first in Pareja in 1968, but a cow seriously injured him at a tentadero soon afterwards, leaving him to recover for two years. On 25 July 1970, he performed at Vista Alegre in Madrid during the night-time La Oportunidad events. El Cossío records that the performance was unimpressive and that «muy pronto dejó de sonar su nombre».
His brother Curro had taken his alternativa at the same Carabanchel arena on 12 October 1969. He was seriously injured by a bull from the Barcial herd. Antonio’s later care for the bulls selected for his toreros was shaped, in part, by the harsh treatment Curro had endured in the ring.
In the last years of his career, Antonio and Fran managed Pablo Aguado. RUSSPAIN has also covered the Sofía Puente case, a separate Madrid court story. Vázquez was travelling to Seville to review bulls for Aguado when the train accident occurred. Iryo said 147 passengers were aboard its service 6076, along with three crew members. A barista and the driver were also on board. Railway Gazette reported 74 fatalities by the evening of 29 October, while rescue and identification efforts continued.
Spain’s Transport Minister Óscar Puente described an early reconstruction in which a computer malfunction affected a security system covering 63 kilometres. The control centre then authorised the Renfe train to resume its journey without speed restrictions. It travelled for about 17 minutes before hitting the stationary Iryo train. The Guardia Civil questioned an Adif control-centre operator as part of the criminal investigation, and the court in Orgaz ordered the proceedings to remain secret. Adif closed the Madrid-Córdoba/Seville high-speed line at 09:10 on 28 October. Investigators had not established a final cause.
