Frankie Dettori to miss Melbourne Cup after being given 16-day ban

10/25/2023 Horse Racing

Frankie Dettori to miss Melbourne Cup after being given 16-day whip ban for breaking rules on QIPCO British Champions Day

  • Frankie Dettori will take no part in next month’s Melbourne Cup due to bans
  • He used his whip above the permitted level twice on British Champions Day
  • The Australian race is one of the few major contests Dettori has not won

Frankie Dettori’s dream of winning this year’s Melbourne Cup is over after he was handed a huge 16-day ban for breaking whip rules on QIPCO British Champions Day.

Dettori had plans for his autumn and winter to be a global tour, with ambitions of competing in all the biggest races in America, Australia and the Far East but he is now having to make other plans after Tuesday’s meeting of the Whip Review Committee.

The Italian was deemed to have crossed the threshold of six strikes twice – once during his winning ride on Trawlerman in the Long Distance Cup and then on Kinross in the Champions Sprint. The penalty for each misdemeanour, given the class of race, was eight days.

David Allan, who denied Dettori in the Sprint on Art Power and Sam James, who guided Poptronic home in the Fillies and Mares Stakes, were also found guilty of transgressing whip rules and got similar eight day bans.

Frankie Dettori’s dream of winning this year’s Melbourne Cup is over due to a 16-day ban

Intriguingly, though, Dettori still intends to go to Australia. He has been widely touted as candidate to appear on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here and, if that is the case, the chances of him riding in Hong Kong in December will be over, too.

Dettori said: ‘Regretfully at British Champions Day I went one stroke over in the opening and subsequent race.

‘Following the whip review committee meeting early this week, my 16-day suspension will take effect from Tuesday, November 7, meaning I am unable to ride at the Melbourne Cup carnival.

‘With flights booked, I still plan to attend Australia’s premier meeting to support the event.’

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