The Caulfield Cup is the target for Alpine Eagle with the rising five-year-old back in work after a short winter break.
Alpine Eagle made an autumn cameo in the R A Lee Stakes in Adelaide on May 21 after an injury absence but could only manage fifth as favourite.
Trainer Tony McEvoy gave the entire another month off and has now turned his attention to the upcoming spring carnival.
“He’s back in the stable. He just had a month to himself and he’s done well and I’ll just build him up now towards some staying races in the spring,” McEvoy said.
“He’ll kick off in those traditional 1400-metre races I’d say and I’ll just bring him through a traditional stayer’s program heading towards the Caulfield Cup.”
Alpine Eagle has won four of his nine starts with his biggest win the 2015 Group Two Autumn Classic (1800m).
A week later he ran second in the Australian Guineas, but his spring campaign was cut short last year after only two starts when he suffered a cracked pedal bone.
McEvoy rated Alpine Eagle’s performance in Adelaide as “fair”.
“He was a bit ring-rusty,” McEvoy said.
“The way the race was run, it was run five and a half seconds outside the (track) record time and it turned into a real sprint home and he was just flat-footed. I thought it was OK for his first run back after a long break.”
The P B Lawrence Stakes or Memsie Stakes in August are among Alpine Eagle’s early options.
