04 December 2023 , 22:34
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Frankie Dettori insists he still feels like a winner despite leaving the jungle in the opening eviction of the series.
The 52-year-old jockey was surprised to be first past the post when it came to the public vote, after Grace Dent and Jamie Lynn Spears quit the camp on medical grounds. In his first in-depth interview since leaving camp, Frankie blamed the show’s editing for his early exit but insisted he had no regrets.
Referring to entering the show on Day Five, he said: “Everybody had already bonded for four days. So I’m the new kid who arrived in a new school. It took a while to break the ice. And you don’t see what is edited on TV. And speaking to my wife, she said I had very little airtime and I thought I had done a lot.
Frankie Dettori on the Gold Coast after being first to be evicted from the Jungle Camp (Tim Merry/Mirror Express)
Frankie still feels like a winner despite being axed from the jungle (James Gourley/REX/Shutterstock)“To me, I have come out of there as a winner. I felt like I did everything I wanted to achieve and I’m very proud of what I did. Going to the jungle, it’s not a race when you are actually in control. It’s the public in control. It’s the social media. I feel like a winner because every challenge I took, I did it and I took it head on.”
The charismatic jockey was due to retire last month but has agreed a deal to keep racing and move to America in 2024. One bonus is that he has lost some weight, which will help when he’s back in the saddle.
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Even with the chance to pig out at the JW Marriott hotel in Surfers Paradise, he chose a caesar salad for his first meal back with wife Catherine. “Rice and beans was boring and plain but it is fuel,” he said of the camp diet.
“The terrain of the jungle, wow, I didn’t realise, I thought it was flat. From getting the wood through to camp is at least a 100ft hike. And when you do that two or three times and it’s 90% humidity and you have a lack of calories – when food is in front of you and it is fuel, you eat it.
“I think I lost five pounds. But putting that in perspective when I’m half the size of Tony [Bellew] ... it will be 10 of his pounds. I am actually at the bottom of my racing weight. So it’s great. Perfect. The thing is now, I think, it’s not putting it back on.”
Frankie already knew Nigel Farage and is full of praise for the divisive politician. But he hinted that Farage may have fallen foul of guidelines the celebs are given when it comes to showering naked.
Asked if he had seen Farage washing with his bottom on show, he replied: “I am not going to go and spy on Nigel’s butt. But really?We were told to keep our swimmers on. I love Nigel, he is super funny, very interesting.”
Asked to pick a winner, Frankie backs Sam Thompson. He said: “Sam is funny. It’s an entertainment show and he is a natural entertainer. Sometimes you want to put him on mute. There’s just no stopping him. In a nice way. He sees everything in a good light and brings happiness to everything. The camp would be very different without him and he will get to the final.”