Thousands crowded Pamplona’s historic city center for the sixth encierro of San Fermín 2026 as the La Palmosilla bulls charged through the narrow streets. They completed the course in 2 minutes and 23 seconds, leaving little room for error among the runners.
The herd comprised eight bulls weighing between 555 and 590 kilograms. Camarado and Mágico were the heaviest, at 590 kilograms each, while Cantarillo was the lightest, at 555 kilograms. The bulls split into two groups along Estafeta Street, heightening the danger and forcing runners to react quickly as the animals thundered past.
La Palmosilla first took part in Pamplona’s festival in 2019 and has since become a regular participant in the Feria del Toro. Its ganadero, Javier Núñez, is associated with the bull Tinajón, which received Pamplona’s Premio Carriquiri as the fair’s bravest bull. The description of this as the herd’s second appearance refers specifically to the encierro, not La Palmosilla’s broader history at the festival.
Despite the speed and density of the crowd, no gorings were reported in the sixth run. A provisional medical report at 08:18 recorded seven participants with contusions. Several runners fell, and the herd’s separation created moments of particular risk. Before the start, runners gathered to ask San Fermín for protection, repeating the ritual three times before the bulls were released from the corrals.
Sunday crowds have long been associated with greater danger on the course. A 1983 report in El País linked weekend increases in visitors to heightened concern and recalled Pamplona’s 1980 “Black Sunday,” when two people died during an encierro. The same report stressed that running is voluntary and carries inherent risk. Outcomes can vary sharply from year to year: an earlier sixth encierro involving El Pilar bulls took 4 minutes and 57 seconds, leaving three runners gored and three others hospitalized after falls.
The sixth encierro leaves two runs on the 2026 festival calendar. Injuries also occurred elsewhere during the Sanfermines: a separate report described a horn injury in the second encierro involving Cebada Gago bulls. Those incidents were separate from the La Palmosilla run. Similar concerns arose when a runner was forced to leave the festival after an injury during the opening encierro, as detailed in this earlier report.
San Fermín’s encierros are a central tradition in Pamplona, drawing locals and visitors from around the world. Runners face the risks of a fast-moving herd in the city’s narrow streets, while emergency services attend the route. Each morning’s run is broadcast live, and crowds gather before dawn as the historic core is transformed. Tradition and adrenaline meet an unpredictable edge at the festival, making every encierro a focal point of the Spanish summer.
