Frankie Dettori CANCELS his plan to retire and plots a move to the US to try to win the Kentucky Derby, as 52-year-old admits ‘I can’t stop while winning’ just a week before his last British race

Frankie Dettori has sensationally cancelled his plan to retire and will instead pursue a new challenge as a jockey in America.

The 52-year-old will have his final rides in Britain next week, when he will take part in QIPCO Champions Day at Ascot, but he has not ruled out the prospect of returning to these shores next summer to ride at the Royal meeting.

Dettori has enjoyed a glorious 2023, winning a raft of major prizes and showing why he has been one of the greatest riders we have ever seen – his effort on Mostahdaf in the Juddmonte International at York was a contender for the best ride of the flat season.

It was at York that Dettori began to have second thoughts about hanging up his saddle and now that he has managed to organise some contractual issues, he will focus on a new challenge: his ambition is to get a fancied ride at the 2024 Kentucky Derby.

Speaking to The Racing Post, Dettori said: ‘I didn’t expect this year to be so successful. I feel like I still have to get it all out of my system, so the obvious choice for me is to move full-time to America because I had such a good time there over the winter. 

Dettori is widely considered one of the greatest jockeys of all time after an incredible 35-year career that has seen him become a champion jockey on three occasions

‘I’m going to be based at Santa Anita but I’ll also do a bit of stuff on the international scene in Dubai and Saudi Arabia when available.

‘We have been working on this for the last few weeks but I wanted to dot all the Is and cross all the Ts before saying anything. 

‘We’ve now sorted things out at home. The kids are settled, our house has been rented and I’ve got myself a visa, which was the big concern. It was a long process to get that but we’ve got it now. We are good to go.’

Dettori added: ‘I started thinking about this after York. When I set out my stall to retire, I didn’t expect to have one of my best years for a long time, probably the best I’ve had since 2019. 

The Italian shocked racing fans last year by announcing the 2023 season would be his last

I thought my rides would fizzle out and that I would slowly head towards the sunset. Instead, I’ve been in demand and that has triggered this decision. As a result of the success I’ve had this year, I now feel that I’m not ready to stop yet.

‘I’m still looking forward to saying my last goodbyes at Ascot on Champions Day but then we’ll move to southern California just before Christmas for our new future. 

‘It’s all about being a freelance in the States but I hope to be riding for everyone, just like I did when I went out there at the end of last year.

‘It could be three months. It could be three years. I don’t know. It depends how it goes.’