Four reasons why you must follow this veteran jockey at Royal Ascot

Palace Pier

The five days of Royal Ascot combine to make the best week in the flat racing calendar. There will be a smaller than usual crowd there in 2021 but it’s a step up on last year. That buzz from the stands makes this meeting so special and drives this jockey in particular forward.

We are talking, of course, about none other than Frankie Dettori. The man for the big stage and for Ascot in particular. We will have horse racing tips for every single race at Royal Ascot and all the best special offers on the free bets page.

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1 – He has more winners than any active jockey at Royal Ascot

Lester Piggott still holds the record for most Royal Ascot winners with a mighty 116 but Dettori now sits on 73. He has been champion jockey at the meeting seven times in his illustrious career, including both 2019 and 2020.

A third straight win would not be out of the question. This year he looks to break his current tie in second place with Pat Eddery and go off in chase of the ‘long fellow.’ 43 to go but he could make a big dent in that in 2021.


2 – He comes alive on the big days

This has sometimes been seen as a dig at Dettori that the effort won’t be there on a Monday but there is little doubt that come the big occasion, there are few better to have on side.

The buzz of the Royal meeting brings Dettori to life, his natural showman side barely kept in check. Punters know that when Dettori gets the blood rush of the big days flowing through his veins, he’s very hard to stop.


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3 – Look how strong his book of rides is

The very first race of the meeting sees Dettori on Palace Pier in the Queen Anne, the shortest priced favourite of the week. Add Lord North in the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes and Stradivarius in the Gold Cup and Dettori is in the plate for what look like being the cornerstones for most punters daily accas.

That’s before any of his rides for Aidan O’Brien are known. Already the winner of the 1000 Guineas and Oaks for the yard on Mother Earth and Snowfall respectively this year, the strength of Ballydoyle can add to Dettori’s haul.

Of course, let’s not forget Wesley Ward, Dettori will no get the leg up on Campanelle in the Commonwealth Cup for the U.S legend, currently a 5/1 chance. Six or seven winners for Dettori this week are entirely possible.


4 – Sheer experience of the track

It was September of 1996 that a twenty-five year old by the name of Frankie Dettori swept the ‘Festival of Racing’ card at Ascot, landing all seven winners. Even a quarter of a century ago, there was no man better at riding winners at the Berkshire course than Dettori.

Only Newmarket has had the pleasure of seeing Dettori have more rides at the track than Ascot since he came over as a young apprentice. There is not a yard of this track that Dettori doesn’t know like the back of his hand and on a week like Royal Ascot in huge, competitive fields, that sheer experience is priceless.


Check out the myracing experts’ Royal Ascot tips and don’t forget to check out the latest Ascot free bets and offers to get a headstart on your festival punting. 

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