Frankie Dettori’s bold call on 9-1 shot Trawlerman lands him Ebor victory

Frankie Dettori pulled off an audacious plan to land the £500,000 Ebor Handicap at York by a short-head on 9-1 shot Trawlerman on the final day of York’s Ebor meeting.

On what could be a massive weekend for the 51-year-old Italian jockey, Dettori kept the John and Thady Gosden-trained horse racing wide away from the main body of the 20-runner field for the first half-mile four furlongs of the mile and three-quarter contest.

After then controlling the race from the front, Dettori found his mount relegated to third before rallying in the final 50 yards to beat Alfred Boucher by a short-head, with Irish-trained favourite Earl Of Tyrone a further length back in third.

The masterclass came 35 minutes after Dettori had executed different waiting tactics to win the valuable Sky Bet City Of York Stakes on Ralph Beckett-trained Kinross, trained by Ralph Beckett. 

‘It was always the plan to stay wide,’ Dettori said of his ride on Trawlerman. ‘I was amazed I was 10 lengths up. I then dropped him in and I thought, “Is he relaxed or is he tired? Have I done too much?”

‘But I sat quiet and waited. Earl Of Tyrone with a double handful and passed me by a good neck and I thought I was done, but when Alfred Boucher came alongside he got competitive again and put his head down on the line.

Dettori heads to Deauville this afternoon where rides Richard Hannon-trained Persian Force for trainer Richard Hannon in the Group One Prix Morny, and Verry Elleegant, the 2021 Melbourne Cup-winner who makes her European debut in the Prix Jean Romanet at Deauville.

‘I am really looking forward to riding Verry Elleegant, Dettori said. ‘I don’t know what to expect. She is a superstar.’

The French track was where Dettori won the Group One Prix Jacques le Marois last Sunday on the Gosden-trained Inspiral.

A turbulent summer, in which the jockey briefly split with the Gosden stable, seems to be well and truly back on track. Reflecting on the split between his stable and Dettori, John Gosden said,

Dettori said: ‘It was always the plan to stay wide. I was amazed I was 10 lengths. I then dropped him in and I thought is he relaxed or is he tired – have I done too much?

‘But I sat quiet and waited. Earl Of Tyrone with a double handful and passed me by a good neck and I thought I was done but when Alfred Boucher came alongside he got competitive again and put his head down on the line.’

‘I am really looking forward to riding Verry Elleegant. I don’t know what to expect. She is a superstar.’

Reflecting on his Summer of up and downs with his jockey, Gosden said: ‘The only reason it happened was because I couldn’t get his attention. 

I couldn’t get him to concentrate, that’s all. In the end it required a bit of a public warning. When our man is in the zone he is absolutely top class. When he is not in the zone he is a menace.’