Italian-born, British-based Lanfranco “Frankie” Dettori was honoured as the recipient of the 2015 Longines World’s Best Jockey Award during a ceremony at the gala dinner of the Longines Hong Kong International Races, held 11 December 2015 at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre.
The Longines World’s Best Jockey Award is based upon performances in the 100 highest-rated Group 1 and Grade 1 races as established for the year by the Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings Committee. The scoring incorporates races from 1 December of the previous year until 30 November of the current year. Jockeys accrue 12 points for a win, 6 points for placing second, and 4 points for placing third.
Mr Dettori won five of the qualifying races, while finishing second four times and third four times. Overall, he accumulated 100 points to take the title, and he had the most top three finishes of any jockey in the world.
Four of Mr Dettori’s five victories—the Investec Derby, Coral-Eclipse, QIPCO Irish Champion Stakes, and Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe— came aboard European Horse of the Year Golden Horn, while the fifth came at Royal Ascot with Undrafted in the Diamond Jubilee Stakes. Other Group 1 victories to Dettori’s credit in 2015 included the Prix de Diane Longines, Darley Prix Morny, and Juddmonte Middle Park Stakes.
Longines Vice President and Head of International Marketing Mr Juan-Carlos Capelli and IFHA Chairman Mr Louis Romanet presented the award to Mr Dettori.
“Rewarding excellence in equestrian sports is a way for Longines to promote our core values, which are tradition, elegance and performance,” said Mr Capelli. “Jockeys are incredible athletes, their amazing skills are impressive and they deserve to be recognized for their talent.”
“Frankie Dettori is one of the stars of the racing world,” said Mr Romanet. “His ride in the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe on Golden Horn was an absolute masterpiece. Furthermore, his consistency during the course of the year was remarkable. He is a deserving winner.”
Ryan Moore, who won the inaugural Longines World’s Best Jockey title in 2014, and Victor Espinoza, who piloted American Pharoah to Triple Crown glory, tied for second, finishing with 90 points each. Maxime Guyon finished in fourth place with 88 points, Javier Castellano finished in fifth place with 86 points, James McDonald finished in sixth place with 82 points, Joel Rosario finished in seventh place with 60 points, Tommy Berry finished in eighth place with 56 points, Hugh Bowman finished in ninth place with 54 points, and Christophe Soumillon finished in 10th with 52 points. The full and final standings can be found at ifhaonline.org.
Contact:
For further details on the Longines World’s Best Jockey Award, please contact:
Andrew Chesser
Secretary General, International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA)
Telephone +1 859 224 2741
Email achesser@jockeyclub.com
About Longines
Passionate about horse racing since 1878, Longines is proud to be the Official Partner and Official Watch of IFHA, and to lend its name to the Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings. The long-term partnership between Longines and the IFHA has seen the establishment of a prestigious set of awards aimed to honour the excellence of horseracing. The Longines World’s Best Racehorse Award, the Longines and IFHA International Award of Merit, and the Longines World’s Best Jockey Award respectively pay tribute to the racehorses, personalities, and jockeys who excel at the highest level of the sport.
Longines has been based at Saint-Imier in Switzerland since 1832. Its watchmaking expertise reflects a strong devotion to tradition, elegance and performance. Longines has generations of experience as official timekeeper of world championships and as partner of international sports federation. Known for the elegance of its timepieces, Longines is a member of the Swatch Group Ltd, the World’s leading manufacturer of horological products. With the winged hourglass as its emblem, the brand has outlets in over 150 countries.
For further information please contact:
Longines International Public Relations
2610 Saint-Imier, Switzerland
publicrelations@longines.com
www.longines.com |
