DETTORI IN TEARS AS ENABLE IS RETIRED
FRANKIE DETTORI has admitted he ‘shed a tear’ when told Enable was to be retired as he hailed her as one of the greatest mares to grace a racecourse.
Dettori was informed on Sunday evening, seven days after the John Gosden-trained mare’s bid for an historic third win in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp ended in anti-climax with a sixth-place finish.
It was the only time six-year-old Enable had finished out of the first three in a 19-race career which also delivered three wins in the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot.
Dettori, 49, said: ‘ Lord Grimthorpe (racing manager to owner Khaled Abdullah) called me last night and I won’t lie to you, I shed a tear. I understand the decision but I was very emotional. I woke up this morning and went to see her and I wasn’t too bad. I just tried to think of the amazing time we had together. She touched my heart and she touched a lot of people’s hearts.
‘Walking back to the paddock after the Arc, I knew at the back of my mind that was the last time I was going to race her. How could you justify running again after she was sixth? It would have been unfair on her.’
Eleven of Enable’s 15 wins came at Group One level, with memorable victories in the Oaks, Irish Oaks, Eclipse and Breeders’ Cup Turf. Dettori added: ‘I have never ridden a horse with her kind of c.v. She was virtually unbeatable.
‘The 2019 King George when she beat Crystal Ocean a neck was probably the strongest King George I have ridden in. She had every chance to throw the towel in but showed what a tremendous race mare she was.
‘For me, her best performance was probably her first Arc at Chantilly in 2017. When I got to the chateau (at the end of the back straight), I knew I had won. She went like a motorbike.’
Enable will be retired to Abdullah Newmarket stud farm where the plan will be to mate her with Kingman, whose progeny include Palace Pier, odds-on favourite for Saturday’s Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot. He is one of three favourites for the Gosden-Dettori combination on British Champions Day alongside Stradivarius (Long Distance Cup) and Mishriff (Champion Stakes).
● IRISH trainer John Oxx, 70, whose best horses in a career spanning more than 40 years include 2009 Derby and Arc winner Sea The Stars, will retire at the end of this season.
● DAVY RUSSELL, who took Tiger Roll to two Grand National wins, faces a significant period out after fracturing a bone in his neck in a fall at Limerick.