Frankie Dettori was the star of the Royal Ascot meeting on day three as he scooped the Group 1 Gold Cup for the ninth time - his final ride in the race - aboard John and Thady Gosden-trained Courage Mon Ami.
The Italian, who will retire at the end of the season, pushed the unbeaten Frankel gelding to win the two and-a-half mile race from Coltrane by three quarter lengths on Thursday.
It was a second victory for Dettori at this year's meeting following success aboard Gregory – for the same Wathnan Racing ownership and trained by the Gosdens – in the Group 2 Queen's Vase. “It's unbelievable,” the veteran jockey, 54, said. “I thought it was a bridge too far from handicaps to a Group 1 but it was the perfect race.
This is what it's all about. “I thought he [Coltrane] was going to come back and in fairness my horse is still a baby but when the other horse did come back he picked up again.” Courage Mon Ami is now undefeated in four starts.