Dettori to miss York after opting for France trip
Frankie Dettori will miss the York Ebor Festival after falling victim to new coronavirus travel restrictions, which mean he will have to spend 14 days in quarantine after he rides in France tomorrow.
Faced with the choice of riding French Derby winner Mishriff and Palace Pier, the Royal Ascot winner due to contest the Group One Prix Jacques Le Marois, or Prince of Wales’s Stakes winner Lord North in the Juddmonte International, he picked the former.
He will ride the John Gosdentrained horses at Deauville today and tomorrow, then return to his home in Newmarket, where he will have to watch the four-day York meeting, one of the biggest in the calendar, on television.
“It was a hard decision,” Dettori said. “I chatted at length to John and we talked about it and chose France. To be honest, Enable is not running and Stradivarius is not running, so that made my decision easier.
“Of course I love York, I wish I was there, but the prize money in France is unbelievable and I’ve got two great horses to ride. It’s a shame this thing happened last night, but what can I do?”
Government advice changed late on Thursday evening when it announced France was to join the UK’S quarantine list from 4am tomorrow following a spike in coronavirus cases.
Dettori partners Mishriff, who won the Prix du Jockey Club last time, in the Group Three Prix Guillaume d’ornano today and Palace Pier in the Marois, France’s signature mile race, on his first start since winning the St James’s Palace Stakes, tomorrow. The race has a first prize of £290,000.
James Doyle, who partnered Lord North to victory at Ascot, will take the ride again at York. Local jockeys have been found for the other British runners heading to the Normandy coast this weekend.
With no restrictions applying to Germany, Hollie Doyle travels to Cologne today seeking her Group One breakthrough on the Ed Vaughan-trained Dame Malliot in the Preis von Europa.
Meanwhile, Willie Robinson, one of the top jockeys of the 1960s, who was synonymous with chasing great Mill House, has died in Ireland, aged 86.
As stable jockey to Fulke Walwyn in England, he partnered Mill House to wins in the 1963 Hennessy Gold Cup, King George VI Chase and Cheltenham Gold Cup, the pair going on to establish a famous rivalry with Arkle, which led to several big clashes.