Frankie Dettori relishing top ride on Advertise in 2,000 Guineas
FRANKIE DETTORI will bid to enact his very own Italian job when he takes the mount on Advertise in the 2,000 Guineas on Saturday.
The legendary pilot is seeking a fourth win in the race after victories aboard Galileo Gold, Island Sands and Mark Of Esteem.
Having originally been scheduled to ride hot ante-post favourite Too Darn Hot, the Milanese maestro will now attempt to maintain his unbeaten record on Advertise – one of only four runners in the race already successful at Group 1 level.
He said: “I was on Too Darn Hot – then we tried with Calyx. Oisin (Murphy) had the ride on Advertise – but John (Gosden) is running Kick On for Qatar Racing, who Oisin is retained to, so it has been a bit of musical chairs really.
“He is a nice horse that is consistent. He is a massive price for what he has done. He was second in the Coventry, has won a Group One and was second in the Dewhurst.
“There are only four Group One winners in the field, and he is one of them. I’m very positive about him, and if he has retained that ability from last year he will be in the shake-up.
“People have said he might not stay because he is by Showcasing – but he got seven well in the Dewhurst, so he has not got much to go.
“I always felt like six was too short last year – and that is why I made good use of him in the Phoenix – but he run a super race in the Dewhurst.
“It looks a wide open Guineas – there are seven or eight in with a shot of winning, and I am one of those. It helps that he has raced at the track before, and his form is rock solid.”
Trainer Martyn Meade is relying on his expertise to get his promising colt to the race fully fit, shying away from any of the trials leading up to the contest.
Dettori added: “He hasn’t run this year – but he has had the racecourse gallop with Oisin (Murphy), and I’ve heard he has done well. I heard he is a big unit now, but he was always a big two-year-old anyway.
“He is a very kind, straightforward horse – and he has got a massive temperament. He has got a nice, smooth action and he travels well.
“He has got a nice of change of gear. He is solid and honest and is not shy of a fight – all of which is what you want in the Guineas.
“I’m only going on what I felt last year – how he is going and how he has wintered I don’t know – but I’m looking at the black-and-white form, and he is up there with the best.”