Dettori becomes first jockey to ride seven winners

FRANKIE DETTORI turned the Festival of British Racing into "Frankie's Festival" when becoming the first jockey to ride all seven winners at a race meeting at Ascot on Saturday.

The champion produced a virtuoso display as he thrilled a crowd of 20,000 with victories on Wall Street, Diffident, Mark Of Esteem, Decorated Hero, Fatefully, Lochangel and Fujiyama Crest.

Alec Russell was the last to go through the card, riding the winners of all six races at Bogside in 1957.

Thousands stayed behind to salute Dettori's feat, which included four winners for the Godolphin team trained by Saeedbin Suroor.

He threw his goggles into the crowd and then sprayed onlookers with the champagne, specially presented by the Queen's representative, Colonel Sir Piers Bengough.

Dettori told racegoers: "I'm just warming up, is there anymore racing! This is everybody's dream. God was on my side."

However, the jockey learned yesterday that not even he is perfect as his bid to challenge Gordon Richards' record of 12 consecutive wins faltered at the first hurdle at the same track.

His first ride, Sunbeam Dance could finish only fourth and he then had to wait until the final race of the day to drive Altamura to victory in the Harvest Stakes. His other results were fifth, second, fifth, 10th, and fourth.

"I am pleased I haven't lost it, even though I had to wait until the lucky last. Yesterday was a great achievement and unfortunately the dream stopped in the first race," he said.

"I had a good run, I wanted to win the first for the crowd, to give them an extra half an hour to think perhaps it could happen all over again."

Henry Cecil signalled his intent to take the battle for the trainers championship right to the wire after hitting back with a Group One success yesterday.

Knocked off top spot by a Godolphin tidal wave, that even engulfed his Classic winning filly Bosra Sham, a Fillies Mile victory by Reams Of Verse put him back on the heels of Saeed Bin Suroor.

Bin Suroor swept past Cecil to put himself into pole position with an astonishing £321,000 haul on Saturday, but Cecil's reply yesterday leaves him just under £5,000 in arrears.

Reams Of Verse was the lesser fancied of the Cecil pair to emulate Bosra Sham, winner of the race last year. But the filly benefitted from a nightmare run by stablemate and 6 to 4 favourite Sleepytime, who finished third under Pat Eddery, as she took the first prize from Khassah by a length and a quarter.

Sleepytime had appeared to be travelling comfortably up the straight but Eddery just couldn't get her through a narrow gap between Red Camellia and the winner inside the final furlong until it was too late.

A stewards inquiry found that Reams Of Verse and Red Camellia had interfered with Sleepytime but ruled it accidental and allowed the placings to stand.

"I've had to squeeze her out and when I've got out it's too late, the race is over," said Eddery. "I definitely would have won the race."

Reams Of Verse, owned by Prince Khalid Abdulla, is now a top-priced 12 to 1 with William Hill for the 1,000 Guineas while Sleepytime is 6 to 1 third favourite with Ladbrokes behind Dazzle.

Cecil said: "I thought I had a great chance to be first and second. I know it sounds very pompous to say it and probably I would have been right if things had gone our way.

"Reams Of Verse is good but I said to the Prince that Sleepytime was all the rage and he said, `I'm not sure we want to run'.

"But I told him Sir Noel Murless warned never to be frightened of one horse and, you never know, Pat Eddery might get into trouble!"

Red Camellia attempted to make all the running but her unbeaten sequence came to an end when she tired to finish fourth, beaten under two lengths.

The Royal Lodge Stakes looked a less significant classic pointer as Benny The Dip beat Desert Story by three-quarters of a length with. Besiege third to initiate a John Gosden double.