BREEDERS' CUP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

November 4, 2023

Frankie Dettori

Richard Thompson

Chris Richardson

John Gosden

Santa Anita Park

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: We have Frankie Dettori here, jockey on Inspiral, winner of the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf. Frankie, this was supposed to be the farewell tour. Congratulations. I know everybody happy to have you staying on. Winning here at Santa Anita on this filly that you had a lot of opportunities aboard, was there ever any doubt about the 1 1/4 mile for her?

FRANKIE DETTORI: No. My main concern, she's always slow out of the gates. Usually the Fillies & Mares cuts out to eight runners, but this year 12. I thought I'll have to really pass most of the horses.

She jumped good. I got squeezed out. I got on the fence. I was pleased. I really wanted to be where William was, but he got there before me.

A real Coca-Cola.

She's a filly. She needs a quarter of a mile to get really in top gear. I thought I'd better not try to go for gaps. I found the opening on the outside. I expected her, again, to find top gear, but once she found top gear -- I don't know if you see her pass the line, she was flying.

Yeah, job done. For the team, this was always the plan. We ditched going a mile because we thought maybe the mile, the way she runs, could be too short for her. It was perfect. Give credit to everyone -- John, Thady, and the Cheveley Park team that supplemented for this race.

Coming in here this week, I thought she's my best ride, and she proved me right.

Q. Six Grade 1 group wins on this. A lot of different races and a lot of different tracks. Is this her best one?

FRANKIE DETTORI: She was champion 2-year-old. Champion 3-year-old filly. The few times she got beat, you can say the ground was too soft or she missed the jump or she wasn't quite ready. But when she's on song, she's -- look, she took it on to the colts and beat them twice. She's one of the better ones for sure.

She won't win a beauty contest, but by God, she can run.

Q. We think she stays in training next year, it's going to be hard for you, isn't it, to watch from afar? Maybe a couple of trips back over?

FRANKIE DETTORI: I knew that was coming (laughter). At least I'm sure that I'll be on her when she gets to Del Mar next year.

Listen, plenty of water under the bridge. We'll see what happens. At the moment, I'm here to stay.

Q. That's your 15th Breeders' Cup winner. Where your career is at the moment, that's probably one of the most important, would you say that?

FRANKIE DETTORI: Look, I love the Breeders' Cup. Santa Anita, obviously, I'm based here, even double sweet. I won the Classic. It's been nothing for five years -- I think since Enable I haven't rode a winner. So it's been a while. Yeah, it feels really sweet.

Well done, John. Oh, he's not here.

Q. Just from the point of view of your career going forward?

FRANKIE DETTORI: I haven't got much left. I'm going to go a little bit forward. If Mr. Thompson books me now, I'm on it for next year. Booked.

Okay. I'm done.

THE MODERATOR: Frankie, you are done. Now we are going by representatives of Cheveley Park. Congratulations on Inspiral. Richard, I will start with you, first. Richard Thompson with Cheveley Park. Start with you first on this incredibly special filly and then winning here today, the Breeders' Cup, with the man Frankie aboard.

RICHARD THOMPSON: This is such a special feeling, obviously, winning the Breeders' Cup with Inspiral. Chris is sitting next to me here. He runs the stuff for us, the family, my mother, et cetera.

To have a homebred filly win the Breeders' Cup is just -- six in group 1, it's the pinnacle of everything we strive for at Cheveley, to breed a filly like this.

THE MODERATOR: Chris Richardson with Cheveley. Frankie was talking a lot about this filly being and a homebred. What do we see next with Inspiral?

CHRIS RICHARDSON: Pleased to say she stays in training, which is very exciting. I think her last performance in the Sun Chariot Stakes at Newmarket was one of the most impressive up until today.

I was very concerned for the pace early on. I thought this wouldn't necessarily play into her hands, but Frank, he gave her a beautiful ride.

John has done a magnificent job in getting the filly, who is quite a high-strung filly -- always has been, ever since she was a foal -- to perform today at the highest level is a huge accolade to Patricia Thompson and the Thompson family.

THE MODERATOR: Any questions for the owner and breeder winning connections of Inspiral? If not, we'll let you go enjoy more champagne. Congratulations on this incredible filly winning today in the Breeders' Cup.

Continuing on with the press conference here with Inspiral's win in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf. Now we have the trainer, John Gosden.

First of all, we spoke with Frankie and spoke with the representatives. This filly has taken everyone on an unbelievable ride this year, but coming over here for this milestone race, take us through what went into that process.

JOHN GOSDEN: Interestingly enough, she's a very talented filly. She was Cartier Champion at 2, Cartier Champion at 3. Pretty phenomenal filly. She had a little hiccup in the spring. We didn't get to race in Royal Ascot, she was second, just needed it over a mile. Then she went and ran at Goodwood in the bog, and it didn't suit her. She then went over to the Jacques Le Marois, the top race in France, won that well, and came back and freshened up for Sun Chariot.

She was poising for the Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot, but the rain arrived, and the terrain came too deep. She was in the race and we didn't even declare her to run. We said, right, we're coming here.

We were confident she'd get the trip, but she is notoriously slow out of the gate. As you saw today, she was last early on. But Frankie did the one thing he could do, he got down towards the inside, followed William Buick, saved every inch. And then he said, as he probably said to you, I've only got one option. I've got to get out as soon as I can. If I wait for the inside -- it didn't open up at the turn, and he did the wise thing and got out.

The way she came and finished and the way she galloped out, she's probably saying that the trainer has been running her over the wrong distance the last year. I knew she'd get the 1 1/4 mile well. She sorted out well. She would have been an unlucky loser, I thought. Ryan Moore ran a beautiful race on Warm Heart and had his race won. But the fear was an Italian set such -- for her such steady fractions, controlled it from the front. When it went 47.4, went 1:12, and I thought we're in trouble here. We can't catch him. And interesting enough, they just run even. They weren't stopping. Normally if they go too quick, they come back.

She's a mighty filly to get there.

Q. They were alluding to how she's a little fresh.

JOHN GOSDEN: Yes, she's very opinionated and very strong minded, and you go with the flow with her. There's no point ever getting in an argument with her because you'd lose. She's got a great will to do what she wants when she wants to. She's good to saddle, but she's down there, when's the fight starting? And she's up for it every day. Superb filly.

I think what's very fulfilling, she's owner bred. Cheveley Park started its own breeding. They bred her, and the whole team there with Richard Thompson here, Patricia's son, it's a wonderful achievement for them. Being an owner-breeder in Europe is a very lonely and difficult place to be and incredibly expensive.

To have a filly come here and do what she's done is extremely fulfilling. It's fair to say, if she hadn't have got there in time, she'd have been an unlucky loser, yes.

Q. Is it fair to think of her as a proper 10 furlong horse for next year, with that lovely program maybe starting with the Brigadier Gerard?

JOHN GOSDEN: I think the options are open. Sprinters get quicker with age, and a filly like this, I think the options are open. Whether you go for the like of the Lockinge or the Queen Anne or she's meant to stay in training. Or you look at races like the Juddmonte International could be very much a race for her, rather than necessarily diving into the stiff mile and a quarter of Ascot, where you climb from Swinley Bottom, and similarly the stiff mile and a quarter in the Eclipse at Sandown, which is uphill (indiscernible) minute.

I could see the Juddmonte International being a very key race for her next year.

THE MODERATOR: And perhaps coming back for Del Mar Breeders' Cup?

JOHN GOSDEN: I think she's handled it very well. She's learned a lot. She went out there and was a little confused about leads. Then I said, Frankie, two days, let's do a proper -- what we call an open canter. It's probably a half speed. She went out there and got her leads organized.

I think, if she's in great order next year, there will be no question but to consider Del Mar very seriously. Particularly since the trainer and his wife love coming back to California.

THE MODERATOR: We love having you back. Congratulations again.