Andy Newton
Top former jockey Frankie Dettori is set for yet another comeback – albeit a short-lived one.
Horseracing’s most recognisable and charismatic jockey will return to the saddle at Doncaster in September, just months after bringing the curtain down on his remarkable career with a winning double in Brazil.
Dettori will line-up in the Betfred Leger Legends race, marking his first ride in Britain since 2023.
The 55-year-old had originally planned to retire at the end of that horse racing season (2023) but instead extended his career by another two years, racing in the United States before finally signing off at Gávea Racecourse in Rio de Janeiro in February 2026.
Frankie Dettori returns for Leger Legends Race
The Leger Legends race is a one-mile classified stakes for former professional jockeys and, for the first time this year, has been moved to the ITV Racing schedule on Friday of the St Leger Festival on September 11.
Former jump jockey, Andrew Thornton, who sits on the race committee and is responsible for organising the jockeys, said:
“We’re absolutely delighted to have Frankie. He’s huge box office and his presence will be an enormous help in raising the profile of the race.”
Thornton, who won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 1998 on Cool Dawn, added.
“Like every jockey and all racing fans, I can still remember where I was when Frankie rode his ‘Magnificent Seven’.
“I was in the old weighing room at Worcester, where they were showing the TV coverage from Ascot. We were like kids in a sweetshop watching it and screaming like nine-year-olds!”
A legend returns to Doncaster
Dettori famously completed his Magnificent Seven at Ascot in 1996, when he rode all seven winners on the card – a feat that remains one of the greatest achievements in British racing history.
His seven Ascot winners were:
- Cumberland Lodge Stakes – Wall Street
- Diadem Stakes – Diffident
- Queen Elizabeth II Stakes – Mark Of Esteem
- Tote Festival Handicap – Decorated Hero
- Rosemary Stakes – Fatefully
- Blue Seal Stakes – Lochangel
- Gordon Carter Handicap – Fujiyama Crest
The cumulative starting-price odds were around 25,000-1, while early prices made the accumulator worth well over 200,000-1.
The achievement proved hugely expensive for bookmakers, with industry estimates putting total losses at around £30-£40 million after countless punters backed Dettori throughout the afternoon.
One famous £62 accumulator landed more than £550,000, making it one of the biggest betting stories in British sporting history.
Nearly 30 years later, Dettori’s Magnificent Seven remains one of the most extraordinary individual sporting achievements ever witnessed on a British racecourse and a landmark moment in horse racing history.
The Legends race was first staged in 2010, and Thornton believes Dettori’s appearance will add even more prestige to the event.
“Frankie follows greats like Mick Kinane and AP McCoy,” he said. “They both won it, so he’s under a bit of pressure to emulate them – not that he’s ever felt pressure!
“Frankie was more than happy to help out the Injured Jockeys Fund because he totally understands where all the money is going. The IJF has been there for all of us; we’ve all needed its help over the years, as have John Oaksey House, Jack Berry House and Peter O’Sullevan House.”
Dettori enjoyed tremendous success at Doncaster during his career, riding more than 150 winners and winning the oldest English Classic – the St Leger – itself on six occasions.
With his first on Godolphin’s Classic Cliche in 1995 and his most recent St Leger success on the John Gosden-trained Logician in 2019.
Thornton also believes this year’s race will attract an even wider audience thanks to the debut appearance of Jamie Hamblett, the former jockey who later found fame as an X Factor semi-finalist and founding member of Union J.
“He brings a whole new demographic, having gone from being an apprentice to where he is now,” Thornton said. “He’s got a massive following.”
Which other former jockeys will be riding in the Doncaster Legends race in 2026?
Other former jockeys confirmed for this year’s Leger Legends line-up include Jimmy Quinn, Adam Kirby, Franny Norton, Sammy Jo Bell, Gary Bardwell, Niall Madden, Megan Nicholls, Gay Kelleway, Richard Patrick, Tom Scudamore and Adrian Nicholls.
Frankie Dettori Profile: Racing’s Flying Italian Legend
Few jockeys have ever captured the imagination of racing fans quite like Frankie Dettori. Instantly recognisable for his trademark flying dismount and infectious personality, the Italian-born rider enjoyed one of the most successful careers in the history of horse racing.
Over a career spanning four decades, Dettori partnered some of the greatest horses the sport has ever seen, winning Classics, Royal Ascot showpieces, Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe titles, Breeders’ Cup races and many of the world’s richest contests.
He became a household name both on and off the racecourse and is widely regarded as one of Flat racing’s greatest-ever jockeys.
How Many Winners Did Frankie Dettori Ride?
Frankie Dettori retired having ridden more than 3,300 winners worldwide, including well over 280 Group and Grade One victories across Europe, North America, the Middle East and Asia.
Among his achievements were:
- Three British Champion Jockey titles (1994, 1995 and 2004)
- 23 British Classic victories
- Six Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe wins
- Nine Ascot Gold Cups
- 81 Royal Ascot winners
He also enjoyed hugely successful partnerships with trainers including Luca Cumani, Saeed bin Suroor, John Gosden and Thady Gosden.
When Did Frankie Dettori Ride His First Winner?
Dettori rode his first career winner in Italy in 1986 as a 16-year-old before moving to Britain to continue his apprenticeship with Newmarket trainer Luca Cumani.
His talent quickly became apparent and, in 1988, he became the first apprentice since Lester Piggott to ride more than 100 winners in a British season.
A year later he was crowned Champion Apprentice before developing into one of the world’s leading Flat jockeys.
When Did Frankie Dettori Retire?
Although Dettori initially announced he would retire after the 2023 Flat season, he reversed that decision and relocated to the United States to continue riding.
He eventually retired from race-riding in February 2026, bringing the curtain down on one of racing’s most remarkable careers after almost 40 years in the saddle.
Frankie Dettori’s Final Years In America
Rather than ending his career in Britain, Dettori moved to California at the end of 2023 to compete on the lucrative American circuit.
He quickly became a major success in the US, riding numerous Grade One winners at tracks including Santa Anita and Del Mar before later basing himself in Florida.
His final American rides came during the 2025 Breeders’ Cup, after which he fulfilled a lifelong ambition by travelling to South America for a farewell tour.
Dettori officially ended his career after partnering Bet You Can to victory at Rio de Janeiro’s Gávea Racecourse on 1 February 2026.
Frankie Dettori’s Biggest Career Wins
Choosing the greatest victories from Dettori’s glittering career is no easy task, but these stand among his most memorable achievements:
- Authorized – 2007 Epsom Derby
- Dettori finally landed Britain’s most famous Flat race after years of near misses.
- Golden Horn – 2015 Epsom Derby
- A second Derby success with one of the outstanding middle-distance horses of the decade.
- Enable – Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (2017 & 2018)
- One of racing’s most iconic partnerships, with Enable becoming a dual Arc heroine.
- Dubai Millennium – Dubai World Cup (2000)
- One of the most dominant performances ever seen in the world’s richest race at the time.
- Stradivarius – Ascot Gold Cup (2018, 2019 & 2020)
- Three consecutive victories aboard the staying superstar cemented both horse and jockey as Royal Ascot legends.
- Raven’s Pass – Breeders’ Cup Classic (2008)
- Dettori became the first jockey to win America’s richest dirt race aboard a European-trained horse.
Frankie Dettori’s New Role as Amo Racing Advisor
Following his retirement from race-riding in February 2026, Frankie Dettori quickly returned to the sport in a different capacity after being appointed as an advisor to Amo Racing.
Working alongside owner Kia Joorabchian, Dettori’s role includes mentoring jockeys, helping to identify and assess young talent, advising on race planning and bloodstock, and supporting the operation’s growing international ambitions.
His wealth of experience at the highest level of the sport makes him a valuable addition to one of racing’s most ambitious ownership groups, allowing him to remain closely involved with elite Flat racing without returning to the day-to-day demands of riding.
