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The journey has been a thrilling, magnificent and sometimes rocky path, yet now, it seems Frankie Dettori's mind is made up. The most celebrated rider over the last 40 years will effectively head into retirement after the main card at the Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar this Saturday, when he will have three opportunities to add a farewell top-tier victory to nearly 300 already in his record. The sport might not witness a career quite like it again.

A Household Name

Alongside Lester Piggott and perhaps John McCririck in the last half-century, Frankie Dettori is recognized by almost everybody, no surname required. People know who he is, even if they possess no interest at all in what he does. In today's world that has been divided by digital platforms and the internet, Dettori may well be the final equestrian personality who will ever enjoy such instant brand recognition across a broad swathe of Britain's people.

Dettori’s lifetime in horse racing, in fact, goes back to a time when the show A Question Of Sport regularly pulled in over 10 million viewers, and a three-year stint as a team leader was more than enough to establish him as the bubbly, unforgettable figure of racing. His final year on the program came in 2004, which was also the year when he secured the Flat jockeys’ title for a third and last occasion. For many in the UK, however, he has likely been the top jockey in most years after that.

A Hard-Earned Fame

It is, in many ways, a hard-earned fame, a mixed blessing for incidents both on and off the track that have repeatedly propelled Dettori onto the front pages, ever since the unforgettable afternoon at Ascot in 1996 when he overcame massive 25,000-1 odds to ride all seven winners on the card.

In June 2000, he was pulled from the burning wreckage of a small plane by his fellow rider, Ray Cochrane, following an accident during takeoff where the pilot was killed. When at last ended his quest for a Derby winner in 2007, that too was headline news.

While everyone admires a winner, they frequently adore an imperfect hero and a return all the more. A six-month ban following a positive drug test for cocaine could have been the end of most jockeys in their forties, plenty of time for owners and trainers to find a younger alternative. For Dettori, however, his 2012 suspension served as a bridge to a renewed association with trainer John Gosden in Newmarket, and a new series of winners and Classic winners, such as Enable, Golden Horn and Stradivarius.

Public Highs and Lows

The celebrated successes and setbacks were an essential part of Dettori’s story, up to and including the embarrassing confession in March that he was filing for bankruptcy after a prolonged dispute with tax authorities over unpaid taxes, a circumstance that Dettori tried, and failed, to keep confidential.

There have been numerous turns in his story, in fact, that it's easy to overlook that absent his tremendous, generational talent, there would be no story at all.

Early Talent and Instincts

It was evident from the start as a teenage apprentice that there was a natural connection between horse and rider 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 a Group One double at Ascot, on the same card that he would charge through unbeaten only six years later. The famous flying dismount, adopted from the American legend Angel Cordero Jr, was incorporated into his routine in 1994, and the buzz from winning major races has never left him. Neither has the talent of knowing, with something akin to foresight, where to position, when to make a move and where the gaps will appear.

What Comes Next?

But what now for the recognizable figure of UK horse racing? It will not be easy to step away completely, regardless if Dettori pursues his expressed wish to accept some mounts in South America, which is something he always wanted to do”. This is not, after all, an ambition that he has mentioned until now.

But the calamitous decision to follow tax guidance that resulted in his tax issues indicates that Dettori will not end his career with enough money saved up to relax and take it easy.

New Role and Opportunities

He has already been appointed to a new position as a “global ambassador” with the football super-agent Kia Joorabchian's growing Amo Racing enterprise. He explained to racing presenter Matt Chapman on Friday this was the primary reason for his exit now, as well as being able to conclude at the Breeders’ Cup. “These opportunities don’t come along, frequently. I appreciate the structure – it's a youthful team with big ambitions,” explained the jockey.

Joorabchian, himself, was gushing in his praise for his new ambassador on Thursday at Del Mar. “He’s an icon, a genuine legend of the sport,” he stated. “When you talk about elite athletes like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Messis and Pelés and similar figures, Frankie represents that to horse racing. When visiting Royal Ascot, you see a statue there, 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 actually work and he will collaborate with us very closely. He will be involved in all aspects of our business [but] he won’t be a racing manager. He is a global 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, behind the ebullient public persona. On both shows, he was an early exit due to viewer votes.

It may be that Dettori personally is unsure what he'll do and how to spend his time once his race-riding days are over. And for at least 24 hours at least, he stays a top-level professional jockey, focused on three rides at one of the most prestigious and glamorous events in the calendar.

The Final Ride

A five-year-old filly named Argine will be his last top-level ride in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, the identical event in which he registered his initial Breeders’ Cup win in 1994. Her performance in Japan in Japan suggests that she has something to find to figure, but few riders historically have excelled in big moments like Lanfranco Dettori.

One last time, cue Frankie?