Gianfranco Dettori is a prominent figure in the history of Italian and international horse racing. Born on 25 April 1941 in Serramanna, Sardinia, Gianfranco was one of the greatest Italian jockeys of all time. His career was characterised by numerous successes both nationally and internationally, and he is remembered for his elegant style, determination and great talent for riding racehorses.
He began his career in the late 1950s, demonstrating an incredible ability to ride horses from an early age. In the 1960s and 1970s, he became an absolute protagonist of Italian horse racing, winning many important races. He was 13 times Italian Champion and achieved memorable successes in prestigious competitions throughout Europe and overseas. His ability to ‘read’ the horse, to adapt to any racing situation and to make the most of his resources made him a legend in the world of horseracing. He was also known for his dedication and discipline, qualities that allowed him to compete at the highest level for decades. Moreover, in 2009 he was awarded the honour of Knight by the President of the Republic, Giorgio Napolitano. But the thing that no roll of honour can recount is the great love he has for his son Lanfranco and the esteem in which they hold each other. One peculiarity, Gianfranco does not use a mobile phone (although he has one) and so it is Mrs Cristina, his wife, whom he met in Deauville and who has always been at his side and his great point of reference, who puts us in touch.
Gianfranco, why is he called the monster?
They called me Nazarene at the beginning, son of God, but then it remained ‘the monster’ because I used to win with unlikely horses. I was a monster for everyone to ride.
As soon as he arrived in Rome, he was a shop boy, a greengrocer, and every time they asked him to change jobs, he replied, and why not?! That was his strength?
I always wanted to test myself and I always liked working. The continent gave you many more possibilities than Sardinia. I started out with horses initially at the trot, but when they proposed to me at Tordivalle to go to Capannelle because I had a light physique, only 46 kg, and suitable for being a jockey, I replied, and why not!
Who did you find at Capannelle?
I found another Sardinian jockey, Angelo Vincis, a student at Scuderia Mantova. Then the tradition of jockeys coming from that land started.
But he knew how to handle horses right from the start. How did he manage them? Did he whisper something to the more difficult ones?
It’s an inexplicable thing. I don’t even know. I understood them and they understood me. If I became Dettori there’s a reason, but this feeling I always had is hard to explain. You would have to have talked to Prince Paddy, a young and quirky horse who became a lambkin with me. I won a lot of races with him, when others were running away from him. Theowner Ely Evans, who called me ‘the baby’, was amazed at the way I controlled that horse, after having told me off so many times when I proposed to ride him.
Is it true that you are still an idol in Australia?
Yes, it is true. When Lanfranco went racing in Sydney, the Italians of a certain age who were cheering for me at the time were saying when are you going to bring your father back? They remember when I won, four of the most important races as the last in the field. At the beginning of my career, they had invited me along with the eight greatest jockeys, including Lester Piggott, the French Saint Martin, Larsson and many others, thanks to the recommendation made by Huchinson, an Australian jockey who had seen me race and win the rankings in Italy. I felt like a little fish out of water. They snubbed me and I thought: the important thing is to participate. I always won with horses that even paid 20 against 1. With one in particular I caused a sensation, Brisbane, he had never won in his career. It was a sudden success and from there began all the international fame and my story that has lasted over twenty years.
Speaking of your son, it wasn’t always sunshine and roses between you.
That is not true. Let’s dispel this urban legend. Only at the beginning when he told me he didn’t want to study any more and that he wanted to be a jockey, I almost fell off my chair, I didn’t believe that he had made a life of sacrifices by getting up early in the morning. Then I bought him a bicycle, we lived one kilometre from the San Siro racecourse, and every morning he got up at half past five to go and ride the horses. From there I realised that this could really be his path. And I sent him to Luca Cumani in the UK. And together we decided to send him to America to learn and complete his training. But what I said was gospel to him, he listened to me, which showed the great admiration he had for me. Only one other time did I make myself heard, because let’s say that he had a lapse, at the moment when his career in England had exploded, he had got head over heels, and I tried to get his feet back on the ground immediately.
What is the difference between you and your son Frankie in running?
The style in my era was different in the beginning. The stirrups were longer, then I brought the fashion of shortening them as they did in America. For me, American jockeys were the best in the world. They are perfect and don’t disturb the horse. The fashion of giving ‘butts’ to the saddle I never could stand, it belongs to mediocre jockeys. In 1965 I went to the United States with Sergio Cumani and brought this American style of riding back to Italy. I taught this style to Lanfranco. I was very collected in the race, he even more so. Once we challenged each other in Milan in the Premio Castellini, in a beautiful head to head (in the photo) and I won with a horse called Krakow, the city where Pope Wojtyla was born.
Have you ever said, I rode for God today?
I never thought so. But in my head, without telling anyone, I used to give myself a boost when I entered the track and convince myself that I would win. Probably this conviction was good medicine.
Do you have any horses of the heart?
Wollow and Bolkonsky, who made me win ten Grand Prix in England.
The Dettori family has proved to be a thoroughbred dynasty. Now who will carry on the tradition?
The tradition, when Frankie stops racing in America as well, will be over. There is my nephew who trains but as jockeys there will be no one left Lanfranco’s sons don’t have the passion or the physique. These new generations no longer have the phisique du role. They are too tall in stature.
How was your farewell to racing at the age of fifty-two?
It was tough. I was shocked. It will also be a shock for my son. He did it in England, and he did it as a winner. Now he’s enjoying racing in the United States.
What does Italian horseracing need at the moment?
It needs publicity. Nobody talks about it anymore. Not even the Gazzetta dello Sport. The bronze statue they dedicated to my son at Ascot, not even Lester Piggot has it, hardly anyone knows it’s there. In other countries it’s a beloved sport and very popular, here very few people know that horse racing takes place at San Siro. For example, the younger generation. We are defeatists, we fail to value what we do well. It’s easier for a negative episode to make the news.
What has horse racing been for you?
Mine has not been a job. It has been a game, a fun, a pastime. It has not been a sacrifice. I have lived a film life.
What is your dream?
I’d like to be reborn as a jockey, I’ve had too much fun. Why not!
