Frankie Dettori's farewell tour has well and truly started, with the Italian guiding Andrew Balding's Chaldean to QIPCO 2000 Guineas success on a wet day on the Rowley Mile.
“To cap off my last season with a Classic is beyond my wildest dreams, especially after what happened at Newbury last time,” Dettori told Racing Post. “My emotions are all over the place. I don't know whether to laugh, cry or enjoy it. I'm so messed up at the moment – let me soak it all in!
Some would've wondered what might've been for Dettori when he hit the post earlier in the card, losing out by a head aboard Saga for The King and Queen Consort on Coronation Day. However, Chaldean's persistence in the Group 1 gave Frankie a fairytale QIPCO 2000 Guineas victory on his last year in the saddle.
The pre-race talk had been largely about Aidan O'Brien's Auguste Rodin, who went off favourite, but he didn't live up to his 'Triple Crown' potential when finishing 12th of a field of 14. Oisin Murphy and Hi Royal finished second with huge odds of 125/1, shared most of the running with the winner, before the Juddmonte horse stormed clear of the field. Royal Scotsman who raced keenly, ran an enormous race to finish in third place.
A jubilant Dettori saluted the crowd on his way into the Winners Enclosure, before delivering his iconic Flying Dismount.
It gave Dettori a fourth QIPCO 2000 Guineas victory, who said: “It [the emotion] has really hit me now – I've got a lump in my throat. It's incredible.”
It's safe to say Chaldean's prep didn't quite go to plan, when chucking off Dettori when leaving the stalls in The Greenham Stakes at Newbury. It didn't look to have an effect with the son of Frankel completing an across-the-card double for trainer Andrew Balding.
Who else!? @FrankieDettori strikes on his final ever ride in the Qipco 2000 Guineas Stakes at @NewmarketRace
Chaldean banishes memories of last time out with a power-packed performance as the colt lengthens clear to score for @AndrewBalding2 and @JuddmonteFarms
pic.twitter.com/rwJ2kGP2MO
— Champions Series (@ChampionsSeries) May 6, 2023
The post ‘I Don’t Know Whether To Laugh, Cry, Or Enjoy It’: Frankie Dettori Launches Farewell Tour With Classic Victory appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
