Military Academy

The broader record tells an interesting story. Across 15 races, this five-year-old has won 3 and finished in the top three on eight other occasions — a win rate of roughly 1 in every 5 races, or 20%, which is genuinely solid for a horse competing at this level. The first win came at Hamilton Park in August 2024, and then within three months came that top-flight Kempton success. Two big wins in quick succession suggested a horse hitting its peak at exactly the right time.

What makes the current situation worth watching is the contrast. Military Academy has not won in its last six races, and the recent form figures — 12-3-2-7-5-6 — show a horse that has placed twice but also had some difficult days. That run of 12 months without a win from a horse that beat the best in Britain only 17 months ago is the kind of puzzle that keeps racing fans interested. Has it gone off the boil, or is a big performance waiting to happen?

The horse is trained by Jane Chapple-Hyam at her yard in Dalham, Suffolk, a team that has sent out 25 winners already this season — a healthy, active string. Chapple-Hyam is a trainer who knows how to place a horse to its best advantage, and the fact that Military Academy raced just three days ago suggests the yard sees it as fit and ready to run. Whether a return to form is coming is the question — but the Kempton win proves, beyond any doubt, that this horse can compete at the very top when everything clicks.