Lone Eagle poised to return from injury this season

Irish Derby runner-up being at late summer/autumn campaign.

Following a serious leg injury, fears that the career of high-class Lone Eagle could be over have proved unfounded, connections have revealed.

Martyn Meade’s Irish Derby runner-up has not been seen since finishing last of five behind Adayar in last season’s King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot.

The son of the late Galileo, who was a neck behind Hurricane Lane at the Curragh, had previously won the Cocked Hat Stakes at Goodwood.

However, he suffered a fractured fetlock in the King George and it was feared the Ballylinch Stud and Aquis Farm-owned colt could be retired.

But hopes are high the four-year-old will make it back to the track this summer.

The trainer’s son and assistant, Freddie Meade, said: “He seems in good form. His injury seems to be on the mend and he is back. Fingers crossed, but at the moment we are in good shape.

“The injury happened at the time of the year where we were lucky in that he had the rest of the year to recover and we didn’t have to rush him back for anything.

“He has had all winter and we are looking at a campaign of late summer or early autumn for him.

“We hope everything keeps going the way it is. We haven’t really discussed anything, as we don’t want to make too many plans, but he is certainly going the right way.

“And his form has worked out brilliantly well.

“Obviously there were excuses in the King George and we think he obtained that injury mid-race. So to even run three or four lengths off the back of them wasn’t a bad feat at all.”

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