Frankie Dettori Royal Ascot winners
At the end of his final Royal meeting, the tally of Frankie Dettori Royal Ascot winners stood at 81 – second only to Lester Piggott on 116 at that point.
The Gold Cup is the feature race of the five days and Dettori’s triumph seemed to be fated as he guided John and Thady Gosden’s Courage Mon Ami to victory in that contest.
After a frustrating Tuesday which featured three seconds, the Italian produced a masterful performance from the front as Gregory took the Queen’s Vase on Wednesday.
Courage Mon Ami lit up Ladies’ Day and then Albany Stakes victor Porta Fortuna and Sandringham Stakes scorer Coppice gave Frankie a Friday double.
Saturday proved an anti-climax in the saddle, but there was another significant moment as the jockey and his wife were a part of the royal procession that is led by the King and Queen from Windsor Castle to the course.
“It’s been really amazing,” said Dettori. “I’ve been pulled left, right and centre by everyone, cheered by everyone, so it’s been very overwhelming, but I haven’t had time to get emotional.
“The royal procession was amazing, to see all the people there. It was an amazing experience to look at the grandstand. The whole ride here, the love the people have for the royals, flags, kids, picnics next to the road, banners, shouting, cheering – amazing.”
WHAT A RACE! @FrankieDettori wins the Gold Cup aboard Courage Mon Ami! #RoyalAscot 🏆 pic.twitter.com/dOcUjboc4w
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) June 22, 2023
He added: “It’s 81 and every one is special. I’d be here all day talking about all of them, but the last Gold Cup was the biggest race of the week and to win that was amazing.
“It hasn’t hit me yet that it’s my last Royal Ascot because it’s been so good; I won the Gold Cup, had four winners, got past 80, which is what I wanted to do.
““It has been sensational. I can still claim that I retired second at the all-time best meeting in the world.”
Dettori was just 19 when partnering Markofdistinction to victory in the 1990 Queen Anne Stakes for his first Royal Ascot success.
The countdown is on to the legendary @FrankieDettori's final #RoyalAscot…
So let's remind ourselves of ALL his spectacular victories here 👑👏
FIRST UP ⏩
🐴 Markofdistinction
📍 Queen Anne Stakes
📆 1990
📝 1/77#FrankieAtRoyalAscot pic.twitter.com/NLG0JomSkI— Ascot Racecourse (@Ascot) April 4, 2023
The Italian’s most successful campaigns came in 1998 and 2019, riding seven winners on each occasion.
He landed a four-timer on Ladies’ Day in 2019, with A’ali, Sangarius, Star Catcher and Stradivarius all obliging.
Saeed bin Suroor trained 24 of Frankie’s victors, with John Gosden next best on 22, while American handler Wesley Ward has provided four memorable strikes.
Dettori has been the leading jockey at Royal Ascot six times and his longest-priced scorer was 28/1 shot Invisible Man in the 2010 Royal Hunt Cup.
The Gold Cup has been his favourite elite-level contest with nine triumphs, while he had eight wins in the Group Two Ribblesdale Stakes.
“One of my proudest moments was to win the Ribblesdale on Phantom Gold for The Queen, that was a big plus in my Royal Ascot career,” recalls Dettori.
Even the famous dress code gets Dettori in the mood, as he added: “My hat comes out only for five days a year! It gets all polished and ready to go and I like it, it’s part of the tradition.
“That’s why Royal Ascot is so unique. Even people who don’t know anything about racing, they know about Royal Ascot because of the traditional dressing up.”
Here are Frankie’s winning rides in the eight Royal Ascot races that now carry Group One status:
Ascot Gold Cup
1992 Drum Taps
1993 Drum Taps
1998 Kayf Tara
2004 Papineau
2012 Colour Vision
2018 Stradivarius
2019 Stradivarius
2020 Stradivarius
2023 Courage Mon Ami
Queen Anne Stakes
1990 Markofdistinction
1997 Allied Forces
1998 Intikhab
2003 Dubai Destination
2004 Refuse to Bend
2007 Ramonti
2021 Palace Pier
Prince of Wales’s Stakes
2001 Fantastic Light
2002 Grandera
2011 Rewilding
2019 Crystal Ocean
St James’s Palace Stakes
1997 Starborough
2016 Galileo Gold
2018 Without Parole
2020 Palace Pier
Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes
1995 So Factual
2015 Undrafted
Coronation Stakes
2020 Alpine Star
2022 Inspiral
Commonwealth Cup
2019 Advertise
2021 Campanelle
King’s Stand Stakes
1994 Lochsong
All odds and markets correct at date of publication
