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I find it impossible to believe that he kept this a secret from the racing community.Many must have known that Frankie had a problem yet failed to help him.Are jockeys supposed to police their buddies or reach out a helping hand? Perhaps the scene is as bad as Fallon stated and nobody will talk.Just as it is in the running world, or the Tour de France?
Ban to run from November 20 to May 19. This is good for him as should he get a mount he will be able to ride in Derby and Oaks.
I hope Frankie opens up to the press and does some interviews about this issue before too long. His image has just taken a freefall. Looking at the Facebook comments on the Racing Post page, most responses fall on the spectrum between "what an idiot" and "SCUM!".
I hope Frankie opens up to the press and does some interviews about this issue before too long. His image has just taken a freefall. Looking at the Facebook comments on the Racing Post page, most responses fall on the spectrum between "what an idiot" and "SCUM!".
I hope he doesn’t. Don’t want to see him him on the celebrity interview circuit feeling sorry for himself. Really get fed up of all these people going on the chat show circuit saying how they fell off the rails etc and took to drink or drugs. He needs to do his time, get help if he requires it, but keep it private.
Don’t want to see him him on the celebrity interview circuit feeling sorry for himself. Really get fed up of all these people going on the chat show circuit saying how they fell off the rails etc and took to drink or drugs. He needs to do his time, get help if he requires it, but keep it private.
Will he now be too hot to handle for the racing television coverage over the next six months?
Will the fact that it is drugs (nobody seemingly wants to say cocaine) mean that we will not be seeing him popping up on Channel 4, At The Races, Racing UK as a guest pundit and presenter?
It would probably send out the wrong message if he were welcomed on to the airwaves in the way he was every time he was banned for whip offences or didn’t have a ride during televised meetings previously.
I sincerely hope he keeps a low profile and we don’t see his grinning face at all. Good job we are in the jumps season so there’s less likelihood of him appearing anywhere for a few months.
He hasn’t really done a great deal wrong. He can take his so called ban, because the season has finished, and he doesn’t have a retainer anyway. Move on.
Might I suggest that he and Fallon open a drug counseling clinic for the racing community much like the AA. They are different personalities so they could offer advise from their different perspectives.Also if they can beat the habit perhaps others could also. Such a venture could help their own recovery.I don’t believe for one moment that they are the only victims of these drugs.
I find it impossible to believe that he kept this a secret from the racing community.Many must have known that Frankie had a problem yet failed to help him.Are jockeys supposed to police their buddies or reach out a helping hand? Perhaps the scene is as bad as Fallon stated and nobody will talk.Just as it is in the running world, or the Tour de France?
I can tell you Andy that my town Newmarket was once described in our local rag as being the ‘Drugs Capital Of East Anglia’ by a high ranking police officer.
The lower end of the racing scene has always been rife with recreational drugs users.
If that’s what you are labelling a ‘problem’ then the problem runs a lot deeper than one high profile jockey I can assure you.
The only difference between Frankie Dettori and a whole heap of other racing industry workers is that he got caught.
Frankie will be able to hang out with Australia’s top rider Damian Oliver who got a deserved and a pretty light 10 months suspension 2 weeks ago for having a $10 000 bet on the 5/4 winner in a race in which he ran 6th and rode the second favourite.
Dettori speaks:
"I’ve been in hiding since it happened because of the shame factor," he told the Daily Star.
"It’s not very pleasant. People will always remember it.
"Now when they look at me they won’t think of the things I have done for racing in the past 20 years, they’ll just think, ‘He’s the guy who got caught with drugs’. But you can’t change the past and you’ve just got to move on.
"I’m ashamed and embarrassed. It was one night of madness with friends. I dropped my guard when I was at my weakest. I was in a dark place. I was very low, my job was going down the drain.
"When I woke up the next morning I regretted it but it was already too late. I will regret it for the rest of my life."
The three-times British champion jockey said the indiscretion came as he feared for his future after his 18-year association with powerful owners Godolphin came to an end in October.
Dettori, who was cautioned by police for possession of cocaine in 1993, said: "The last three or four months have been very strange. It’s been frustration, unhappy times. I’ve been in a bad place.
"I wanted to be in the number-one car, not the second driver. Inside myself I wasn’t happy, which is why I let my guard down – I made a mistake."
The only difference between Frankie Dettori and a whole heap of other racing industry workers is that he got caught.
….. and it takes the French authorities to catch him.
Testing in this country does not seem to work that well at all.
Paul Struthers states there were 2,607 urine and 3,967 breath tests in the UK since 2005, with "failure" rates of 0.3% and 0.2% respectively.
That’s 372 urine and 566 breath tests a year or roughly one urine and 1.5 breath tests a day – not exactly widespread testing, so the chances of getting tested look to be rather slim. If I was abusing I wouldn’t be too worried at those odds.
I also wonder if the tests which are carried out are random or targeted – I suspect random, which reduces even further the chances of being caught.
There should be far more testing with a combination of random and targeted testing.
I’m sure you, living in Newmarket, would be able to come up with an even better "target" list than I would.
Dettori speaks:
"I’ve been in hiding since it happened because of the shame factor," he told the Daily Star.
"It’s not very pleasant. People will always remember it.
"Now when they look at me they won’t think of the things I have done for racing in the past 20 years, they’ll just think, ‘He’s the guy who got caught with drugs’. But you can’t change the past and you’ve just got to move on.
"I’m ashamed and embarrassed. It was one night of madness with friends. I dropped my guard when I was at my weakest. I was in a dark place. I was very low, my job was going down the drain.
"When I woke up the next morning I regretted it but it was already too late. I will regret it for the rest of my life."
The three-times British champion jockey said the indiscretion came as he feared for his future after his 18-year association with powerful owners Godolphin came to an end in October.
Dettori, who was cautioned by police for possession of cocaine in 1993, said: "The last three or four months have been very strange. It’s been frustration, unhappy times. I’ve been in a bad place.
"I wanted to be in the number-one car, not the second driver. Inside myself I wasn’t happy, which is why I let my guard down – I made a mistake."
Well he would say that wouldn’t he?
He is effectively saying yes I was caught in 1993 and I have been caught in a "one off" situation in 2012.
He must be the world’s most unlucky drug taker if the only two times he’s used the stuff he’s been caught.
Good point, Paul. If he turned to cocaine for some sort of escape at his lowest point, that suggests Dettori has used it heavily or consistently in the past.
You wouldn’t light a cigarette at a time of despair if you had never smoked or rarely smoked…
The only difference between Frankie Dettori and a whole heap of other racing industry workers is that he got caught.
….. and it takes the French authorities to catch him.
Testing in this country does not seem to work that well at all.
Paul Struthers states there were 2,607 urine and 3,967 breath tests in the UK since 2005, with "failure" rates of 0.3% and 0.2% respectively.
That’s 372 urine and 566 breath tests a year or roughly one urine and 1.5 breath tests a day – not exactly widespread testing, so the chances of getting tested look to be rather slim. If I was abusing I wouldn’t be too worried at those odds.
I also wonder if the tests which are carried out are random or targeted – I suspect random, which reduces even further the chances of being caught.
There should be far more testing with a combination of random and targeted testing.
I’m sure you, living in Newmarket, would be able to come up with an even better "target" list than I would.
Certainly could have done in times gone by Paul. Because of the appeal of racing Newmarket is a fairly cosmopolitan place. It isn’t exactly a sprawling Metropolis though. It’s an intimate little town so nothing much stays secret for long. I’ve seen a few recognizable faces in situations they wouldn’t want to be brought into the public domain over the years.
General Cocaine use in the town began to escalate several years ago. I don’t get out on the town much nowadays, but I’m pretty sure it hasn’t gone away. It’s inevitable really that some of those within racing are caught up in the drugs scene.
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