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Frankie Dettori: What Comes Next as Racing's Greatest Icon Steps Away?
The journey has been an exhilarating, magnificent and at times rocky path, but this time, it seems the famed jockey's decision is final. The most storied rider of the past 40 years is set to enter retirement after the main card during the Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar this Saturday, where he has three opportunities to add a farewell top-tier victory to his almost 300 already in his record. The sport might not witness a career quite like it again.
A Household Name
Together with racing great Lester Piggott and maybe John McCririck over the past half-century, “Frankie” registers with almost everybody, without needing a last name. People know his identity, even if they have no interest at all in his profession. In today's world which has become fragmented by digital platforms and online networks, Dettori may well be the last racing figure who will ever enjoy such instant name-recognition among a wide segment of Britain's people.
Dettori’s lifetime in horse racing, in fact, dates back to a time when the show A Question Of Sport often attracted more than 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 last year on the show came in 2004, which was also the year when he won the Flat jockeys’ title for a third and last occasion. For much of the British public, however, he has probably been the champion for many seasons after that.
A Hard-Earned Fame
It is, in many respects, a hard-earned fame, a double-edged reward for incidents on and off the track which have often propelled Dettori into the headlines, since the unforgettable afternoon at Ascot in 1996 when he overcame massive 25,000-1 odds to win all seven races on the card.
Back in June 2000, he was pulled from a fiery crash of a small plane by his fellow rider, Ray Cochrane, following an accident on takeoff in which the plane’s pilot lost his life. When he finally concluded his pursuit for a Derby victory in 2007, that also became headline news.
While everyone admires a winner, they often love an imperfect hero and a return all the more. A six-month ban after a failed drug test for cocaine could have been the end of most jockeys in their forties, more than enough time for owners and trainers to seek a younger replacement. For Dettori, though, his 2012 suspension served as a bridge to a renewed association with trainer John Gosden in Newmarket, and a new series of champions and classic victors, including Enable, Golden Horn and Stradivarius.
Public Highs and Lows
The public highs and lows have been a crucial element of his narrative, right up until the humiliating admission in March that he filed for bankruptcy following a long-standing disagreement with HMRC regarding unpaid taxes, a circumstance that he attempted, and did not succeed, to keep private.
There have been numerous turns to the tale, indeed, that it's easy to overlook that absent his tremendous, once-in-a-generation skill, there would have been no story at all.
Natural Ability
It was clear from his earliest days as a teenage apprentice that there was a natural connection between horse and rider whenever Dettori was in the saddle.
Steeds performed for him, and improved for him. In 1990, he became the first teen since Piggott to achieve 100 wins in one season, and also marked his arrival among the elite with two Group One wins at Ascot, on the same day that he would charge without a loss just six years later. His iconic flying dismount, copied from the American legend Angel Cordero Jr, was added to Dettori’s repertoire in 1994, and the thrill from winning major races has always stayed with him. Nor has the gift of knowing, with something akin to clairvoyance, where to sit, when to strike and where the gaps will appear.
The Future Ahead
But what now for the public face of UK horse racing? It won't be simple to step away completely, whether or not Dettori fulfils his apparent desire to take “a few rides in South America, which is something he always wanted to do”. This is not, in fact, a goal that he has mentioned until now.
However, the disastrous choice to accept the tax advice that led to his dispute with HMRC means that Dettori will not end his career with sufficient funds in the bank to kick back and take things easy.
Fresh Ventures
He has been confirmed in a new role as a “global ambassador” with the soccer agent Kia Joorabchian's growing Amo Racing operation. Dettori told Matt Chapman on At The Races last Friday this was the main reason for his exit now, along with the chance to finish at the Breeders’ Cup. “Such chances don’t come along, very often. I like the set-up – it's a youthful team with huge goals,” explained the jockey.
Joorabchian, himself, was gushing in his praise for his new recruit on Thursday at Del Mar. “He’s an icon, a genuine legend of the sport,” Joorabchian said. “When discussing elite athletes like LeBron James, Currys, Messis and Pelé and people like that, Frankie represents that for horse racing. When visiting Royal Ascot, you notice a statue, you know that he’s made a big impact on so many lives across the world.“He’s not here|“He isn't here} to amuse audiences, he's here to work and he will working with us closely. He will be involved in all aspects of our business [but] he won’t be a racing manager. He is an international ambassador.”
Television reality shows is another possibility, though previous appearances on Celebrity Big Brother and I’m A Celebrity … have tended to reveal a moodier side to Dettori’s character, beneath the cheerful public persona. On both shows, 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 at least one more day, he remains a top-level professional jockey, concentrating on three mounts at one of the most prestigious and glamorous events in the calendar.
The Final Ride
A five-year-old filly called Argine will be Dettori’s final Grade One mount in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, the identical event in which he registered his initial Breeders’ Cup win back in 1994. Her form at home indicates that she needs to improve to compete, yet few jockeys historically have risen to an occasion like Frankie Dettori.
One last time, is it time for Frankie?
Margaret Houston
A dedicated writer and theologian passionate about sharing faith-based insights and fostering community connections.
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