🔗 Share this article

It has been a thrilling, magnificent and sometimes bumpy ride, but this time, it seems the famed jockey's decision is final. The most celebrated jockey over the last four decades will effectively enter retirement after the main card at the Breeders’ Cup in Del Mar on Saturday, where he has three chances to secure one last Grade One winner to nearly 300 on his record already. The sport might not see a career quite like it again.

An Iconic Figure

Together with Lester Piggott and maybe John McCririck over the past half-century, “Frankie” is recognized by pretty much everyone, no surname required. The public knows who he is, even if they have no interest at all in his profession. In today's world which has become divided by digital platforms and the internet, Dettori may well be the final equestrian personality who will ever enjoy such instant brand recognition among a wide segment of Britain's people.

His entire career in the sport, after all, goes back to an era when A Question Of Sport regularly pulled in over 10 million audience members, and his three-year role as a team leader was more than enough to establish him as the lively, irrepressible face of the sport. His final year on the program came in 2004, that was also the time when he secured the Flat jockeys’ title for the third and last occasion. As far as many in the UK, though, he has likely been the top jockey for many seasons since.

A Hard-Won Celebrity

It is, in many ways, a hard-earned fame, a double-edged reward for events on and off the racecourse which have often propelled Dettori onto the front pages, since the unforgettable afternoon at Ascot in 1996 when he overcame massive 25,000-1 odds to win all seven races on the card.

In June 2000, he was rescued from a fiery crash of a small plane by his fellow rider, Ray Cochrane, after a crash during takeoff where the pilot lost his life. When at last concluded his pursuit for a Derby victory in 2007, that also became front-page news.

And if everyone loves a champion, they frequently adore a flawed hero and a comeback all the more. A half-year suspension after a failed drug test for cocaine could have been the end of most jockeys in their 40s, more than enough time for trainers and owners to seek a younger replacement. For Dettori, however, his 2012 suspension served as a bridge to a revived partnership with John Gosden at Newmarket, and a fresh succession of winners and classic victors, including Enable, Golden Horn and Stradivarius.

Public Highs and Lows

The public highs and lows have been an essential part of his narrative, up to and including the embarrassing confession in March that he filed for bankruptcy following a long-standing disagreement with tax authorities over unpaid taxes, a circumstance that he attempted, and failed, to keep confidential.

There were numerous turns to the tale, in fact, that it's easy to forget that absent Dettori’s immense, generational talent, there would be no story at all.

Natural Ability

It was evident from the start as a teenage apprentice that he had an instinctive rapport between horse and rider when Dettori was on board.

Horses ran for him, and improved for him. Back in 1990, he was the first teenager since Lester Piggott to reach 100 winners in one season, and also marked his emergence at the highest level with two Group One wins at Ascot, on the same card that he would charge without a loss just six years later. The famous flying dismount, adopted from the American legend Angel Cordero Jr, was added to Dettori’s repertoire in 1994, and the buzz from riding a big-race winner has always stayed with him. Nor has the gift of sensing, with something akin to foresight, where to position, when to make a move and where openings will appear.

What Comes Next?

But what now for the public face of UK horse racing? It won't be simple to finally let go, regardless if Dettori pursues his expressed wish to accept some mounts in South America, something that I’ve always wanted to experience”. It is not, after all, a goal that he had mentioned previously.

But the calamitous decision to accept the tax advice that led to his dispute with HMRC indicates that Dettori will not end his career with sufficient funds in the bank to relax and take it easy.

New Role and Opportunities

He has already been confirmed in a new role as an international ambassador with the soccer agent Kia Joorabchian’s burgeoning Amo Racing enterprise. He explained to Matt Chapman on At The Races on Friday this was the main reason for his exit now, along with the chance to finish at the Breeders’ Cup. “These opportunities are rare, frequently. I like the set-up – it's a youthful team with huge goals,” said the rider.

Joorabchian, himself, was effusive in his compliments for his new recruit on Thursday at Del Mar. “He is an icon, a genuine legend of the sport,” he stated. “When discussing great sportsmen like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Messis and Pelés and people like that, Frankie represents that for horse racing. When visiting Royal Ascot, you see a statue there, you know that he’s made a big impact on so many lives worldwide.

“He’s not here|“He isn't here} to amuse audiences, he’s here to actually work and he will be collaborate with us closely. He will be involved in every area of our operations though he won't serve as a racing manager. He is an international ambassador.”

Television reality shows are another option, although earlier outings on Big Brother and I'm A Celebrity have tended to reveal a more somber aspect of his personality, beneath the cheerful public persona. In both programs, he was an early casualty due to viewer votes.

It may be that Dettori personally does not really know what he'll do and how to spend his time after his race-riding days ends. And for another 24 hours at least, he stays an elite professional jockey, focused on three mounts at one of the most prestigious and dazzling events on the schedule.

The Final Ride

A five-year-old mare called Argine will be his last top-level ride in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, the same race where he achieved his first Breeders’ Cup success back in 1994. Her performance in Japan in Japan suggests that she has something to find to figure, yet few jockeys in history have ever excelled in big moments like Frankie Dettori.

For one final time, cue Frankie?