Frankie Dettori: I’m itching to go on Create A Dream

This weekend sees the Flat season kick into gear and I’m absolutely thrilled to be back racing in the UK.

I’m heading to Doncaster and I’ve no doubt that the big story of my day is likely to revolve around Create A Dream. There’s always some added anticipation ahead of any meeting when Wesley Ward sends an exciting horse over and Create A Dream is one horse I’m thrilled to be on.

When it comes to training two-year-olds Wesley’s record is second to none. His Royal Ascot record with juveniles is outstanding and his runners create added excitement so I’m not at all surprised that everyone is getting fired up about this one and I’m fired up too.

I’d be keen to stress that in general his horses do tend to prefer the faster ground but the forecast is dry heading into the weekend so hopefully we won’t encounter conditions too soft. I wouldn’t want to see much rain come for Create A Dream.

I have a lot of faith in Wesley’s judgement but it is a big task when you bring a horse that hasn’t really been tested and you put her into a different race environment for the first time. She’s getting the allowance which will help us and I’m really excited to see how she goes.

A lot has been made about Wesley sending a horse over this early in the season for such a relatively small prize. I understand the questions but one of the aims of this weekend is to help clarify the pecking order for Royal Ascot.

There’s already been a lot of talk of her chances at Royal Ascot this year but I’m wary about that. It’s a little bit premature really. Let’s get Saturday out of the way first and see where we stand.

Some horses can suffer stage fright at this stage of their career and some will relish it, we just don’t know. I’m not looking beyond this race right now but that might be different come Saturday evening.

Wesley is bullish. He wouldn’t send her over here if he didn’t think she was up to it but we’re setting out on the journey so will try to contain the excitement.

I’ve been very lucky with Wesley in the past. I’ve won at the Breeders’ Cup and won the Diamond Jubilee for him last year but I really don’t know what his grand plans are yet for this Summer. For now though we’ve got a little bit of added spice to this weekend.

Wesley will love Donny!

I believe Wesley is making the trip to Doncaster for the first time this weekend. I’m not sure if he’s been to South Yorkshire before but I know he’ll like it there. There’s always a good, knowledgeable crowd on Town Moor for the opening meeting and it’s a lovely track. The ground will be fresh and I’m sure he’ll have a great time.

Step down in class will benefit Moheet

I’m riding Moheet at Doncaster and I’m expecting a big run from him.  He ran a good race in Qatar last month and he looks fit and ready to go.

He posted a great run on his debut but then struggled in better company so the drop down in class should help him. Bless him, he ran in the Guineas and the Derby and we took him to Qatar on ground he didn’t really like so it’s been tough enough for him. He prefers a straight course like Doncaster and he’s got a good run under his belt so he should run a big race.

I should also be riding Ocean Tempest in the Lincoln, which is exciting.

He won it two years ago and hopefully we’ll be in with a squeak again. I have won most of the other major handicaps but I’m yet to win the Lincoln. It’s a gap on my CV that I am keen to fill.  The race looks typically competitive again this year with the difference between top weight and bottom weight only eight pounds so I’ll need some luck.

I can’t wait to get cracking this weekend. There’ll be bigger and better weekends to come but I’m bursting with excitement ahead of Doncaster. We’ll learn some lessons and best of all, I’m just glad to be back for what I hope will be another great season.

Good luck,

Frankie

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.