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It has been an exhilarating, glorious and at times rocky path, yet now, it seems the famed jockey's mind is made up. The most storied rider over the last four decades is set to enter retirement following the primary events at the Breeders’ Cup at 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 see a career quite like it again.

An Iconic Figure

Alongside Lester Piggott and maybe John McCririck over the past 50 years, “Frankie” is recognized by pretty much everyone, without needing a last name. The public knows his identity, even if they possess no interest at all in what he does. In a world which has become divided by social media and online networks, Dettori may well be the last racing figure who will ever experience such immediate name-recognition across a broad swathe of Britain's people.

Dettori’s lifetime in the sport, after all, dates back to an era when the show A Question Of Sport regularly pulled in more than 10 million audience members, and a three-year stint as a team captain was sufficient to cement him as the bubbly, unforgettable figure of racing. His last year on the program was 2004, which was also the time when he secured the Flat jockeys’ title for a third and last occasion. For many in the UK, however, he has likely been the champion for many seasons since.

A Hard-Won Celebrity

It is, in many respects, a hard-won celebrity, a double-edged reward for incidents on and off the track which have often pushed Dettori onto the front pages, since that memorable day at Ascot in 1996 when he overcame massive 25,000-1 odds to win all seven races that day.

In June 2000, he was rescued from a fiery crash of a light aircraft by his fellow rider, Ray Cochrane, after a crash during takeoff where the pilot was killed. When at last ended his quest for a Derby winner in 2007, that also became front-page news.

And if everyone loves a winner, they frequently adore an imperfect hero and a comeback all the more. A half-year suspension after a failed drug test for cocaine would have been the finish for many riders in their 40s, plenty of time for owners and trainers to seek a younger replacement. For Dettori, however, his 2012 suspension served as a bridge to a renewed association with John Gosden in Newmarket, and a fresh succession of champions and classic victors, such as Enable, Golden Horn and Stradivarius.

Ups and Downs

The public highs and lows have been an essential part of his narrative, right up until the humiliating admission in March that he was filing for bankruptcy after a prolonged dispute with tax authorities over unpaid taxes, a situation that he attempted, and did not succeed, to keep confidential.

There have been so many twists to the tale, in fact, that it's easy to forget that absent Dettori’s immense, once-in-a-generation skill, there would have been no narrative whatsoever.

Early Talent and Instincts

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

Steeds performed for him, and got better under him. In 1990, he was the first teenager since Piggott to reach 100 winners in a season, and also announced his emergence among the elite with two Group One wins at Ascot, on the same day that he would dominate through unbeaten just six years later. His iconic flying dismount, copied from the US legend Angel Cordero Jr, was added to Dettori’s repertoire in 1994, and the buzz from riding a big-race winner has always stayed with him. Neither has the talent of sensing, with almost clairvoyance, where to sit, when to strike and where openings will emerge.

What Comes Next?

But what now for the recognizable figure of UK horse racing? It won't be simple to finally let go, regardless if Dettori pursues his expressed wish to take “a few rides in South America, something that I’ve always wanted to do”. It is not, after all, a goal that he has mentioned until now.

However, the disastrous choice to accept the tax advice that led to his tax issues indicates 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 confirmed in a new role as a “global ambassador” with the football super-agent Kia Joorabchian’s burgeoning Amo Racing enterprise. Dettori told racing presenter Matt Chapman last Friday this was the main reason for his exit now, as well as being able to finish at the Breeders’ Cup. “Such chances don’t come along, frequently. I appreciate the structure – this is a young team with big ambitions,” explained the jockey.

Joorabchian, himself, was effusive in his compliments for his new ambassador on Thursday at Del Mar. “He is an icon, a genuine legend of the sport,” he stated. “When you talk about great sportsmen like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Messis and Pelé and people like that, Frankie is that to horse racing. When you go into Royal Ascot, you notice a statue, you know that he has influenced on so many lives across the world.

“He’s not here|“He isn't here} to amuse audiences, he's here to work and he will be working with us closely. He will be involved in all aspects of our operations [but] he won’t be a racing manager. He is a global ambassador.”

Reality TV is another possibility, although earlier outings on Celebrity Big Brother and I’m A Celebrity … have tended to reveal a more somber aspect of his personality, behind the ebullient public image. On both shows, he was an early exit due to viewer votes.

It may be that Dettori himself is unsure what he'll do and how he will fill his time after his race-riding days ends. And for another one more day, he stays a top-level professional jockey, focused on three rides at one of the most prestigious and dazzling events in the calendar.

The Final Ride

A five-year-old filly called Argine will be his final Grade One mount in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, the identical event in which he registered his initial Breeders’ Cup win back in 1994. Her form at home in Japan suggests that she has something to find to figure, but few riders historically have risen to an occasion like Frankie Dettori.

One last time, is it time for Frankie?