Trueba a first winner for Wesley Joyce since return from injury

Trueba was a hugely popular winner, when providing young Wesley Joyce with his first success since returning from serious injury, in the first division of the Follow Us On Social Media Handicap at Cork.

A horse who tends to deliver on the days that matter, the seven-year-old who also won for Frankie Dettori on his visit to Bellewstown almost two years ago, resumed winning ways at an apt time.

Wesley Joyce suffered serious injuries in a horror fall at the Galway festival last summer, for a long time looking as though his career as a jockey was over, before it had really even begun.

To his immense credit, the young Limerick man has battled against all the odds to make a return to the saddle. In recent weeks, Joyce has been hitting the crossbar in pursuit of that much sought after winner but this afternoon everything finally fell into place.

Trainer Eddie Linehan had Trueba primed for this race at his local track, with Joyce booked to ride the former Johnny Murtagh inmate.

Always prominent just off the leaders, Joyce produced Trueba to head Florence Thompson and Step Back In Time well inside the final furlong, before going on to record an emotional success.

Wesley Joyce: "It’s been a while coming, I’ve been hitting the crossbar and in the past three or four weeks, I’ve had three or four seconds and a couple of thirds. I was thinking when was the winner going to come!

"Trueba gave me a winner early in my career, in Limerick, so he’s been a good servant for me and thanks to Eddie, the team, and to everyone here for the support."

He added “since the fall, the journey has been hard but to come back riding, that’s all I ever wanted to do. I just want to keep riding, and whatever happens happens. I’m so grateful to be here riding, especially riding a winner.

“I’m back to 100 percent fitness but I was told that I’d only have 80 percent of my breathing, so I have to work extra hard on my fitness, which I’ve been doing. It seems to be okay, working away grand.

“It’s great to have my mother here as it’s her first time to see me ride a winner. She’s happy out, and that’s all I want, is to make them happy.”

Additional reporting by Thomas Weekes