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The journey has been a thrilling, magnificent and at times bumpy ride, yet now, it appears the famed jockey's mind is made up. The most celebrated rider over the last four decades will effectively head into retirement following the primary events during the Breeders’ Cup in Del Mar on Saturday, when he will have three opportunities to add a farewell top-tier victory to nearly 300 on his record already. Racing may not witness a career like his ever again.

An Iconic Figure

Alongside racing great Lester Piggott and perhaps John McCririck in the last 50 years, Frankie Dettori is recognized by pretty much everyone, without needing a last name. People know his identity, even if they possess no interest at all in his profession. In today's world which has become divided by social media and online networks, Dettori may well be the final equestrian personality who will ever experience such immediate name-recognition across a broad swathe of Britain's people.

His entire career in the sport, after all, goes back to a time when the show A Question Of Sport regularly pulled in over 10 million audience members, and a three-year stint as a team leader was sufficient to establish him as the bubbly, irrepressible face of the sport. His last year on the show was 2004, that was also the time when he secured the top jockey award for the third and final time. As far as many in the UK, though, he has likely been the top jockey for many seasons since.

A Hard-Earned Fame

This is, in many ways, a hard-won celebrity, a mixed blessing for events on and off the racecourse which have often propelled Dettori into the headlines, since that memorable day at Ascot in 1996 when he overcame odds of 25,000-1 to ride all seven winners that day.

In June 2000, he was rescued from the burning wreckage of a small plane by his fellow rider, Ray Cochrane, following an accident on takeoff where the pilot was killed. When at last concluded his pursuit for a Derby victory in 2007, that too was headline news.

And if everyone loves a winner, they frequently adore a flawed hero and a return all the more. A six-month ban after a failed drug test for cocaine could have been the finish for most jockeys in their 40s, plenty of time for owners and trainers to find a younger alternative. For Dettori, however, his 2012 suspension was a bridge to a renewed association with John Gosden in Newmarket, and a new series of champions and classic victors, such as Enable, Golden Horn and Stradivarius.

Public Highs and Lows

The public highs and lows have been an essential part of Dettori’s story, up to and including the embarrassing confession this past March that he filed for bankruptcy following a long-standing disagreement with tax authorities regarding unpaid taxes, a situation that he attempted, and did not succeed, to keep private.

There have been numerous turns in his story, in fact, that it's easy to forget that without Dettori’s immense, once-in-a-generation skill, there would have been no narrative whatsoever.

Natural Ability

It was clear from the start as a young apprentice that he had an instinctive rapport between horse and rider when Dettori was on board.

Horses ran for him, and got better under him. Back in 1990, he became the first teen since Lester Piggott to achieve 100 wins in a season, and also marked his arrival at the highest level with a Group One double at Ascot, on the same card that he would dominate through unbeaten just six years later. The famous flying dismount, copied from the US legend Angel Cordero Jr, was added to Dettori’s repertoire in 1994, and the buzz from winning major races has always stayed with him. Nor has the gift of knowing, with almost foresight, where to sit, 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, something that he always wanted to do”. This is not, in fact, a goal that he has mentioned until now.

However, the disastrous choice to follow tax guidance that resulted in his tax issues means that he will not draw down the curtain with enough money in the bank to relax and take it easy.

Fresh Ventures

He has been appointed to a new position as a “global ambassador” with the soccer agent Kia Joorabchian’s growing Amo Racing operation. He explained to Matt Chapman on At The Races last Friday this was the primary reason for his exit now, along with the chance to conclude at the Breeders’ Cup. “These opportunities are rare, frequently. I appreciate the structure – it's a youthful team with huge goals,” said the rider.

Joorabchian personally, was gushing in his praise for his new recruit on Thursday at Del Mar. “He’s an icon, a genuine legend of the sport,” Joorabchian said. “When discussing great sportsmen like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Messis and Pelés and similar figures, Frankie represents that to horse racing. When you go into Royal Ascot, you notice a statue, you know that he has influenced on so many lives worldwide.

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

Reality TV is another possibility, although earlier outings on Big Brother and I’m A Celebrity … have tended to reveal a moodier side to Dettori’s character, beneath the cheerful public persona. On both shows, he was an early exit due to viewer votes.

It's possible that Dettori himself does not really know what he'll do and how he will fill his time once his riding career 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 on the schedule.

The Final Ride

A five-year-old mare named 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 form at home in Japan suggests that she has something to improve to compete, yet few jockeys in history have ever risen to an occasion like Frankie Dettori.

For one final time, cue Frankie?