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It has been an exhilarating, glorious and sometimes rocky path, yet now, it seems the famed jockey's decision is final. The most celebrated jockey of the past 40 years will effectively head into retirement following the primary events during the Breeders’ Cup in Del Mar this Saturday, when he will have three opportunities to add a farewell Grade One winner to nearly 300 on his record already. The sport might not witness a career quite like it again.

An Iconic Figure

Alongside Lester Piggott and perhaps John McCririck in the last 50 years, “Frankie” is recognized by almost everybody, without needing a last name. The public knows his identity, even if they have absolutely no interest in what he does. In a world which has become fragmented by social media and online networks, Dettori could be the final equestrian personality that will ever enjoy such instant name-recognition among a wide segment of the British population.

Dettori’s lifetime in the sport, in fact, dates back to an era when A Question Of Sport regularly pulled in over 10 million audience members, and a three-year stint as a team leader was sufficient to cement him as the lively, irrepressible face of the sport. His final year on the program came in 2004, that was also the time when he won the Flat jockeys’ title for a third and last occasion. As far as much of the British public, however, he has probably been the champion for many seasons after that.

A Hard-Earned Fame

This is, in many ways, a hard-won celebrity, a double-edged reward for incidents both on and off the track which have often propelled Dettori onto the front pages, ever since the unforgettable afternoon at Ascot in 1996 when he defied odds of 25,000-1 to win all seven races that day.

Back in June 2000, he was pulled from a fiery crash of a small plane by his fellow rider, Ray Cochrane, following an accident during takeoff in which the plane’s pilot lost his life. When he finally ended his quest for a Derby winner in 2007, that also became headline news.

While everyone admires a champion, they frequently adore a flawed hero and a return all the more. A six-month ban after a failed drug test for cocaine would have been the end of many riders in their 40s, more than enough time for owners and trainers to find a younger alternative. For Dettori, though, his 2012 suspension served as a bridge to a renewed association with trainer John Gosden in Newmarket, and a fresh succession of winners and Classic winners, including Enable, Golden Horn and Stradivarius.

Ups and Downs

The public highs and lows have been a crucial element of his narrative, up to and including the humiliating admission this past March that he filed for bankruptcy following a long-standing disagreement with tax authorities regarding unpaid taxes, a circumstance that he attempted, and did not succeed, to keep confidential.

There were so many twists to the tale, indeed, that it's easy to overlook that without Dettori’s immense, generational talent, there would be no narrative whatsoever.

Early Talent and Instincts

It was clear from his earliest days as a teenage apprentice that there was a natural connection between horse and rider when Dettori was on board.

Horses ran for him, and got better under him. Back in 1990, he was the first teenager since Piggott to achieve 100 wins in one season, and also announced his arrival at the highest level with a Group One double at Ascot, on the same card that he would dominate without a loss only six years later. The famous flying dismount, adopted 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 never left him. Nor has the gift of sensing, with almost foresight, where to position, when to make a move and where openings will appear.

What Comes Next?

But what next for the recognizable figure of British racing? It won't be simple to finally let go, regardless if Dettori fulfils his apparent desire to accept some mounts in South America, something that he always wanted to experience”. It is not, after all, a goal that he has mentioned previously.

However, the disastrous choice to accept the tax advice that led to his tax issues means that Dettori will not draw down the curtain with sufficient funds saved up to kick back and take it easy.

Fresh Ventures

He has been appointed to a new position as an international ambassador with the soccer agent Kia Joorabchian's growing Amo Racing enterprise. He explained to Matt Chapman on At The Races last Friday this was the main reason for his departure now, along with the chance to finish at the Breeders’ Cup. “These opportunities are rare, frequently. I appreciate the structure – it's a youthful team with big ambitions,” explained the jockey.

Joorabchian personally, was gushing in his praise for his new recruit at Del Mar on Thursday. “He is an icon, a genuine legend of the sport,” Joorabchian said. “When discussing great sportsmen like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Lionel Messi and Pelé and similar figures, 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 worldwide.

“He’s not here|“He isn't here} to entertain people, he's here to work and he will be collaborate with us very closely. He will participate in every area of our business though he won't serve as a racing manager. He is a global ambassador.”

Television reality shows is another possibility, though previous appearances on Big Brother and I’m A Celebrity … have tended to reveal a more somber aspect to Dettori’s character, beneath the cheerful public persona. In both programs, he was an early casualty due to viewer votes.

It may be that Dettori himself does not really know what he will do and how to spend his time once his riding career ends. And for another one more day, he stays an elite professional jockey, focused on three mounts at one of the globe's prestigious and dazzling events on the schedule.

The Final Ride

A five-year-old filly called Argine will be his last top-level ride in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, the identical event in which he registered his first Breeders’ Cup success back in 1994. Her performance in Japan indicates that she needs to improve to compete, but few riders historically have risen to an occasion like Frankie Dettori.

For one final time, is it time for Frankie?