New Monarch

That breakthrough came at Kempton Park on 18 March 2026, and it arrived at a distance that suits. Over 7 furlongs to a mile, New Monarch has won 1 race from 5 attempts — a 20% win rate, or roughly 1 in every 5 races at that trip — which is meaningfully better than its overall record. That gap tells a story: give this horse the right distance, and it becomes a different proposition.

The recent form figures of 27-6-7-1-4-4 read from most recent to oldest, so the 27th-place finish at the top is the one to set aside. Strip that out, and what you see is a horse that finished 6th and 7th before landing that Kempton win (the "1"), then placed 4th twice before that. It has raced just yesterday, meaning the team are keeping it busy and in form, which often signals that the yard — sorry, that the yard — believes the horse is in a good place physically.

Speaking of the yard, Andrew Balding's operation at Kingsclere in Hampshire has been in exceptional form, sending out 202 winners this season alone. That is a remarkable volume from a single training base, and it means New Monarch is being prepared by one of the most productive yards in the country right now. Horses trained by Balding tend to be well-placed and properly prepared for their races, so when one of his horses lines up at a trip it handles, it is worth paying attention.

New Monarch won for the first time three months ago and has raced again yesterday, meaning the squad around this horse are clearly not resting on that one result. Still young, still learning, but increasingly hard to ignore at the right distance.