Frankie Dettori: What Lies Ahead as Horse Racing's Greatest Icon Exits the Stage?

It has been an exhilarating, glorious and at times bumpy ride, but this time, it seems Frankie Dettori's mind is made up. The most celebrated jockey of the past 40 years is set to enter retirement following the primary events at the Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar this Saturday, when he will have three opportunities to secure one last top-tier victory to his almost 300 already in his record. The sport might not see a career like his ever again.

A Household Name

Alongside racing great Lester Piggott and perhaps John McCririck over the past 50 years, Frankie Dettori registers with pretty much everyone, without needing a last name. People know who he is, even if they possess absolutely no interest in what he does. In a world which has become fragmented by social media and the internet, Dettori could be the final equestrian personality that will ever enjoy such instant name-recognition among a wide segment of Britain's people.

Dettori’s lifetime in horse racing, after all, dates back to a time when A Question Of Sport often attracted over 10 million audience members, and his three-year role as a team leader was sufficient to cement him as the lively, irrepressible face of racing. His last year on the show was 2004, that was also the time when he won the Flat jockeys’ title for the third and final time. As far as many in the UK, though, he has probably been the top jockey for many seasons after that.

A Hard-Earned Fame

It is, in many respects, a hard-won celebrity, a double-edged reward for incidents on and off the racecourse that have repeatedly pushed Dettori into the headlines, since the unforgettable afternoon at Ascot in 1996 when he defied odds of 25,000-1 to ride all seven winners on the card.

Back in June 2000, he was rescued from the burning wreckage of a small plane by his fellow rider, Ray Cochrane, after a crash during takeoff where the pilot lost his life. When he finally ended his quest for a Derby winner in 2007, that also became front-page news.

While everyone admires a champion, they frequently adore a flawed hero and a return even more. A half-year suspension after a failed drug test for cocaine could have been the end of most jockeys in their 40s, plenty of time for owners and trainers to find a younger alternative. For Dettori, however, suspension in December 2012 served as a bridge to a renewed association with trainer John Gosden in Newmarket, and a fresh succession of champions and classic victors, including Enable, Golden Horn and Stradivarius.

Public Highs and Lows

The celebrated successes and setbacks have been an essential part of his narrative, right up until the embarrassing confession this past March that he filed for bankruptcy after a prolonged dispute with HMRC regarding unpaid taxes, a situation that he attempted, and failed, to keep private.

There were so many twists in his story, indeed, that it can be easy to overlook that absent Dettori’s immense, generational talent, there would be no story at all.

Early Talent and Instincts

It was clear from the start as a teenage apprentice that he had an instinctive rapport with the horses whenever Dettori was on board.

Horses ran for him, and got better under him. In 1990, he became the first teen since Lester Piggott to achieve 100 wins in a season, and also marked his emergence among the elite with two Group One wins at Ascot, on the same day that he would charge without a loss only six years later. The famous flying dismount, copied from the US legend Angel Cordero Jr, was incorporated into Dettori’s repertoire in 1994, and the thrill from riding a big-race winner has always stayed with him. Nor has the gift of knowing, with something akin to foresight, where to sit, when to strike and where the gaps will appear.

What Comes Next?

But what now for the public face of UK horse racing? It will not be easy to step away completely, whether or not Dettori pursues his apparent desire to accept some mounts in South America, which is something I’ve always wanted to experience”. It is not, after all, an ambition that he had mentioned previously.

However, the disastrous choice to accept the tax advice that led to his tax issues indicates that Dettori will not draw down the curtain with enough money saved up to relax and take things easy.

Fresh Ventures

He has already been appointed to a new position as an international ambassador with the football super-agent Kia Joorabchian’s growing Amo Racing enterprise. Dettori told racing presenter Matt Chapman last Friday this was the main reason for his departure now, as well as being able to conclude at the Breeders’ Cup. “Such chances don’t come along, frequently. I appreciate the structure – this is a young team with huge goals,” said the rider.

Joorabchian personally, was effusive in his compliments for his new ambassador on Thursday at Del Mar. “He’s an icon, he is a true legend of the sport,” Joorabchian said. “When you talk about great sportsmen such as LeBron James, Currys, Lionel Messi and Pelés and people like that, Frankie represents that to horse racing. When visiting Royal Ascot, you notice a statue, you realize that he’s made a big impact on so many lives across the world.

“He’s not here|“He isn't here} to entertain people, he's here to work and he will working with us very closely. He will participate in every area of our operations [but] he won’t be a racing manager. He is a global ambassador.”

Reality TV is another possibility, though previous appearances on Big Brother and I'm A Celebrity often showed a moodier side of his personality, beneath the cheerful public image. In both programs, he was an early exit due to viewer votes.

It's possible that Dettori himself is unsure what he'll do and how to spend his time after his riding career ends. And for another one more day, he stays a top-level professional jockey, concentrating on three mounts at one of the most prestigious and glamorous events on the schedule.

One Last Mount

A five-year-old mare named Argine will be his final Grade One mount in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, the same race in which he registered his first Breeders’ Cup success in 1994. Her performance in Japan in Japan suggests that she has something to find to figure, but few riders in history have ever excelled in big moments like Lanfranco Dettori.

For one final time, is it time for Frankie?