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It has been a thrilling, magnificent and sometimes bumpy ride, but this time, it seems the famed jockey's decision is final. The most storied rider over the last 40 years will effectively enter retirement after the main card at the Breeders’ Cup in Del Mar this Saturday, where he has three opportunities to secure one last Grade One winner to his almost 300 already in his record. The sport might not see a career like his ever again.

An Iconic Figure

Together with racing great Lester Piggott and maybe John McCririck in the last 50 years, Frankie Dettori registers with pretty much everyone, without needing a last name. People know who he is, even if they possess no interest at all in his profession. In a world which has become divided by social media and online networks, Dettori could be the last racing figure who will ever enjoy such instant name-recognition across a broad swathe of Britain's people.

His entire career in horse racing, in fact, goes back to an era when A Question Of Sport often attracted more than 10 million viewers, and a three-year stint as a team leader was sufficient to establish him as the lively, unforgettable figure of the sport. His last year on the show was 2004, which was also the year when he secured the Flat jockeys’ title for the third and last occasion. As far as much of the British public, though, he has probably been the top jockey for many seasons since.

A Hard-Won Celebrity

This is, in many ways, a hard-earned fame, a double-edged reward for events both on and off the track which have often pushed Dettori onto the front pages, ever since that memorable day 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 rescued from the burning wreckage of a small plane by his fellow rider, Ray Cochrane, after a crash on takeoff in which the plane’s pilot was killed. When at last ended his quest for a Derby victory in 2007, that also became headline news.

While everyone admires a champion, they often love an imperfect hero and a return all the more. A six-month ban following a positive drug test for cocaine would 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 was a bridge to a revived partnership with trainer John Gosden in Newmarket, and a fresh succession of champions and classic victors, such as Enable, Golden Horn and Stradivarius.

Public Highs and Lows

The public highs and lows were an essential part of his narrative, right up until the embarrassing confession in March that he filed for bankruptcy following a long-standing disagreement with HMRC over unpaid taxes, a circumstance that Dettori tried, and did not succeed, to keep confidential.

There were numerous turns to the tale, indeed, that it's 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 young apprentice that there was an instinctive rapport with the horses whenever Dettori was in the saddle.

Steeds performed for him, and improved for him. Back in 1990, he was the first teenager since Piggott to achieve 100 wins in one season, and also announced his emergence at the highest level with two Group One wins at Ascot, on the same card that he would charge through unbeaten only six years later. His iconic flying dismount, copied from the US legend Angel Cordero Jr, was incorporated into his routine in 1994, and the thrill from winning major races has never left him. Nor has the gift of sensing, with almost foresight, where to sit, when to make a move and where openings will appear.

What Comes Next?

But what next for the recognizable figure of British racing? It will not be easy to finally let go, regardless if Dettori pursues his expressed wish to accept some mounts in South America, something that he always wanted to experience”. It is not, in fact, a goal that he had mentioned previously.

However, the disastrous choice to accept the tax advice that resulted in his dispute with HMRC means that he will not end his career with sufficient funds saved up to relax and take it easy.

Fresh Ventures

He has already been appointed to a new position as a “global ambassador” with the football super-agent Kia Joorabchian's burgeoning Amo Racing enterprise. Dettori told 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 are rare, frequently. I appreciate the structure – it's a youthful team with huge goals,” 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,” Joorabchian said. “When discussing elite athletes such as LeBron James, Currys, Messis and Pelés and people like that, Frankie represents that to horse racing. When you go into Royal Ascot, you notice a statue, you realize that he has influenced countless lives across the world.

“He’s not here|“He isn't here} to entertain people, he's here to 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 an international ambassador.”

Reality TV are another option, though previous appearances on Big Brother and I'm A Celebrity often showed a more somber aspect of his personality, behind the ebullient public persona. In both programs, he was an early casualty of the public vote.

It's possible that Dettori personally is unsure what he will do and how he will fill his time once his race-riding days ends. And for another 24 hours at least, he stays an elite professional jockey, focused on three rides at one of the globe's prestigious and dazzling events on the schedule.

One Last Mount

A five-year-old mare called Argine will be Dettori’s final Grade One mount in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, the same race in which he registered his first Breeders’ Cup success in 1994. Her form at home indicates that she has something to improve to compete, yet few jockeys historically have excelled in big moments like Frankie Dettori.

For one final time, cue Frankie?