Frankie Dettori insists he will not start crying just yet as he began his final season riding in the UK in the best possible fashion when partnering Covey to an easy victory at Newmarket on Tuesday.
Dettori announced in December that 2023 would be his last year in the saddle and the 52-year-old has just returned from a fruitful spell in America.
While there is no denying Dettori’s Italian roots, Newmarket has been his home since 1985 when he arrived in the UK as a teenager and it was fitting that his swansong season began on his doorstep.
“I arrived this morning, I slept two hours on the plane and two hours in my bed this morning!” he said.
“I had to start somewhere and I thought this was a good favourite. Reach For The Moon was a bit disappointing, but that’s the game and it’s good to get a win on the board.
“I was counting it this morning, I’ve got exactly six months left. It is six months until October 21 on Champions Day, but I’ve still got plenty to do and I’m not going to start crying yet, I’m going to enjoy it.
“He seemed a nice horse, he did it all on his own and he’s learning still but he felt nice.”
Covey is trained by John and Thady Gosden and after their rather public fallout last season, brief as it was, Gosden senior and his jockey appear back on the best of terms.
John Gosden said: “He only landed at 6am so it’s good to put him on a winner.”
