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It has been an exhilarating, glorious and at times rocky path, yet now, it appears Frankie Dettori'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 at Del Mar on Saturday, when he will have three opportunities to add a farewell top-tier victory to his almost 300 on his record already. Racing may not witness a career quite like it again.

A Household Name

Together with racing great Lester Piggott and perhaps John McCririck over the past 50 years, “Frankie” is recognized by pretty much everyone, no surname required. The public knows who he is, even if they possess absolutely no interest in his profession. In today's world that has been divided by digital platforms and the internet, Dettori could be the last racing figure who will ever experience such immediate name-recognition among a wide segment of Britain's people.

His entire career in the sport, after all, dates back to an era when A Question Of Sport regularly pulled in more than 10 million viewers, and a three-year stint as a team captain was sufficient to cement him as the bubbly, unforgettable figure of racing. His final year on the program was 2004, that was also the year when he secured the Flat jockeys’ title for the third and last occasion. For much of the British public, though, he has likely been the top jockey for many seasons after that.

A Hard-Earned Fame

This is, in many ways, a hard-earned fame, a mixed blessing for events on and off the track that have repeatedly propelled Dettori onto the front pages, since the unforgettable afternoon at Ascot in 1996 when he defied odds of 25,000-1 to win all seven races on the card.

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 where the pilot lost his life. When he finally ended his quest for a Derby victory in 2007, that too was headline news.

And if everyone loves a champion, they often love a flawed hero and a comeback even more. A half-year suspension after a failed drug test for cocaine could have been the finish for most jockeys in their forties, more than enough time for trainers and owners to find a younger alternative. For Dettori, however, suspension in December 2012 was a bridge to a renewed association with John Gosden at Newmarket, and a fresh succession of champions and classic victors, including Enable, Golden Horn and Stradivarius.

Public Highs and Lows

The public highs and lows were an essential part of his narrative, up to and including the embarrassing confession in March that he was filing for bankruptcy following a long-standing disagreement with HMRC regarding unpaid taxes, a situation that Dettori tried, and did not succeed, to keep private.

There have been so many twists to the tale, indeed, that it can be easy to forget that absent his tremendous, generational talent, there would be no story at all.

Natural Ability

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

Steeds performed for him, and got better under him. Back in 1990, he was the first teenager since Piggott to reach 100 winners in a season, and also marked his arrival among the elite with two Group One wins at Ascot, on the same card that he would dominate through unbeaten only 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 thrill from riding a big-race winner has always stayed with him. Nor has the gift of knowing, with something akin to foresight, where to position, when to strike and where the gaps will emerge.

What Comes Next?

But what now for the recognizable figure of British racing? It will not be easy to finally let go, regardless if Dettori pursues his expressed wish to take “a few rides in South America, something that he always wanted to experience”. This is not, after all, a goal that he has mentioned previously.

However, the disastrous choice to accept the tax advice that resulted in his dispute with HMRC indicates that Dettori will not draw down the curtain with sufficient funds in the bank to kick back and take things easy.

Fresh Ventures

He has already been confirmed in a new role as a “global ambassador” with the soccer agent Kia Joorabchian's burgeoning Amo Racing operation. He explained to racing presenter Matt Chapman last Friday this was the main reason for his departure now, along with the chance to conclude at the Breeders’ Cup. “These opportunities are rare, frequently. I like the set-up – this is a young team with big ambitions,” explained the jockey.

Joorabchian, himself, was gushing in his praise for his new ambassador on Thursday at Del Mar. “He’s an icon, he is a true legend in the sport,” he stated. “When discussing elite athletes like LeBron James, Currys, Lionel Messi and Pelé and similar figures, Frankie is that to horse racing. When visiting Royal Ascot, you see a statue there, you know that he’s made a big impact countless lives across the world.

“He’s not here|“He isn't here} to entertain people, he's here to work and he will be working with us 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, although earlier outings on Celebrity Big Brother and I’m A Celebrity … often showed a more somber aspect of his personality, behind the ebullient public image. In both programs, he was an early casualty of the public vote.

It's possible that Dettori personally is unsure what he'll do and how to spend his time after his riding career ends. And for at least one more day, he remains a top-level professional jockey, concentrating on three rides at one of the globe's prestigious and glamorous events in the calendar.

The Final Ride

A five-year-old mare called Argine will be Dettori’s final Grade One mount in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, the identical event in which he registered his initial Breeders’ Cup win in 1994. Her form at home in Japan suggests that she needs to improve to compete, yet few jockeys in history have ever risen to an occasion like Frankie Dettori.

One last time, cue Frankie?