Frankie Dettori will ride Piz Badile in next month's Cazoo Derby (G1), Alan Cooper, racing manager to owners the Niarchos family, has told the Racing Post.
Piz Badile, a general 10-1 shot for next month's classic June 4, has been ridden by Gavin Ryan on his first three starts but the connections have moved early to secure the services of two-time Derby winner Dettori.
Cooper said: "Piz Badile will be ridden by Frankie Dettori in the Derby and we're all looking forward to June 4."
Trained by Donnacha O'Brien, Piz Badile was last seen winning the P.W. McGrath Memorial Ballysax Stakes (G3) at Leopardstown last month.
Legendary 51-year-old jockey Dettori won his first Derby on Authorized in 2007 and doubled his tally with Golden Horn eight years later. He plans to have a sit on his Derby mount in the coming weeks before the pair team up in competition for the first time at Epsom.
Speaking after Cooper revealed the booking, Dettori said: "I got the call, and he's a very exciting horse. He comes into the Derby with a good profile and he's a lovely ride to have.
"I've known the Niarchos family for a long time and I was pleased to get the call. I'm looking forward to sitting on him, maybe sometime next week and then it's on to Epsom."
O'Brien, who started training in January 2020 after quitting the saddle aged 21 but has yet to run have a runner at Epsom, teamed up twice with Dettori in Britain last season when Unconquerable finished third in the Juddmonte Royal Lodge Stakes (G2) and was narrowly denied by a head in second in the Godolphin Flying Start Zetland Stakes (G3).
Dettori is no stranger to riding for the Niarchos family in the Derby, having partnered on Circus Maximus to finish sixth in the race in 2019. He rode John Leeper last year for Ed Dunlop, finishing ninth.
The Sir Michael Stoute-trained Desert Crown heads the ante-post market for the Derby as a general 2-1 favorite following his impressive win in last week's Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Dante Stakes (G2) at York, with the Aidan O'Brien-trained trial winners Stone Age and Changingoftheguard next in the betting ahead of Piz Badile.
