THE MONA LISA IS PUTTING SMILES ON THE FACES OF CONNECTIONS

The Mona Lisa (Andrew Calder) safely held Perfect Justice to win Saturday's Midway - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

“We were all getting a little despondent when The Mona Lisa didn’t run a place in her first five starts,” said Martha Cave. “She’d shown definite ability in her work, but had a very quirky nature and little idea of race craft. I was confident she’d put it all together one day, but I was beginning to wonder when.”

The wait was short. Just twelve days after a lacklustre run at Goulburn on March 11th the then three year old filly decided to “get fair dinkum” in a $50,000 Super Maiden on the same track over 1300m. She did what she’d done in all five previous starts and that was to begin on terms with the field but fail to muster any early speed. The filly travelled three back on the fence to the 500m where Shaun Guymer was able to get her out and running. The Mona Lisa joined in on the corner where she was pushed five wide and dealt a hefty bump from the horse on her inside. Perhaps the contact was a wake-up call. She charged past the leaders and attacked the line to win by close to four lengths in a totally dominant maiden win. Training partners Paul and Martha Cave were both elated and relieved.

Just as connections allowed themselves to think she’d turned the corner, The Mona Lisa delivered another gut-wrenching disappointment eighteen days later. Taken all the way to Orange for what appeared to be suitable Cl 1 race, the filly began fairly but immediately went back to last of thirteen runners. She finished officially tenth 5.5 lengths from the winner, and the mood was sombre at the Caves’ Warwick Farm stables the following morning. Buoyed by the “too bad to be true” theory, Paul and Martha opted for one more run before a spell. It was back to Goulburn for a 1300m BM58 and the engagement of the very capable expat NZ jockey Andrew Calder. The Mona Lisa was last of six approaching the turn and wasn’t getting a lot of room on straightening but found a gap at the 200m to put her rivals away with a newly acquired turn of foot. The win completed a double for the Cave/Calder partnership which had prevailed in the previous race with Stay Tuned. The mood at Curragh Lodge was far more relaxed than it had been after the Orange disaster two weeks earlier. A couple of days later The Mona Lisa was dispatched to Paul and Martha’s Mulgoa property for what would turn out to be an enormously beneficial spell.

Second of The Mona Lisa's five wins was a BM58 at Goulburn - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

Just over five months later the now four year old resumed with a quiet trial at Warwick Farm and has been a very focused mare ever since. “She’s not the sweetest thing around the stable and for a long time was an absolute nightmare on the float, especially coming home from the races,” said Martha. “But from a racing point of view she’s done very little wrong this preparation.”

The mare resumed at Goulburn on October 7th with an impressive Cl 3 win, coming from last of six to swamp the talented Kreon in the last few strides. She followed up with a closing sixth at Hawkesbury and a BM64 win at Rosehill when she dashed between horses to grab favourite Virgil’s Gift in the last few strides. Her third placing in a BM 72 at Canterbury was an eyecatcher on November 28th. She came from well back in a slowly run race to beat all but Forecaster and Eclair Encore and would have run second in another stride. The Mona Lisa continued her upward trajectory on December 7th with a close third to Mortal Halo and Automne Tree at Rosehill after showing more early speed than ever before. Her racing technique was clearly improving.

Win number 4 for the daughter of Under The Louvre in a BM64 at Rosehill defeating Virgil's Gift - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

To Saturday’s Midway at Randwick and Andrew Calder was having his seventh race ride on the lightly raced mare. Punters were cognisant of The Mona Lisa’s rapid improvement as evidenced by the solid support she received in the latter stages of betting. She left the barrier faster than ever before and Calder was pleasantly surprised to find himself with an easy lead. The mare settled nicely in front despite a little mid race pressure from Lugarno with Perfect Justice and Trafalgar Square right behind them. Callistemon and favourite Oakfield Saturn were both handily placed while Kingston Charm was a little worse than midfield. The Mona Lisa again showed her burgeoning turn of foot to shake off Lugarno and dash well clear at the 200m. After being held up for a few strides Perfect Justice got into the clear and actually took a little ground off The Mona Lisa without posing a serious threat.

The Mona Lisa wins her first race at Royal Randwick. She led throughout in Saturday's Midway - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

Part owner Susie Castle-Roche was delighted to acquire The Mona Lisa’s dam Skyerush in foal to Under The Louvre on the Inglis Digital Sale in April of 2021. She was aware of Skyerush’s racetrack deeds when trained by the late Guy Walter. The Super Jet (USA) mare raced 45 times for 11 wins, 19 placings and $966,000 in prize money. She won two editions of the Gr 2 Emancipation Stakes and ran second in another. She won a Gr 3 Liverpool Cup, a Gr 3 Doncaster Prelude, and a Gr 3 Belle Of The Turf. Her black type placings included a second to Pear Tart in the 2012 Gr 1 Tatt’s Tiara.

Susie did some quick research on the sire of the foal Skyerush was carrying at the time of purchase. She was impressed by the fact that Under The Louvre had won 9 races and registered 13 placings for the tidy prize money tally of $1.8 million. His crowning glory was a win in the 2016 Gr 1 Stradbroke Hcp with Dwayne Dunn in the saddle. His Gr 1 placings came in two editions of the Goodwood Hcp, an Oakleigh Plate, and a Rupert Clarke Stakes. Under the Louvre’s most effective racing weapon was a dazzling turn of foot. It seems The Mona Lisa has inherited a small share of the paternal speed genes.

When Susie’s Under The Louvre filly reached the breaking-in stage she invited good friends Michael Merriman and David Hewlett to join her in the ownership. All three are more than chuffed with the mare’s record of 14 starts, 5 wins, 2 placings and over $161,000. Selecting the most appropriate name for a filly by Under The Louvre was a relatively easy job, but expecting that name to be available was an exercise in optimism. Susie was stunned when the Racing NSW Registrar gave her the thumbs up. To have a horse racing in Australia bearing the name of an iconic oil painting completed by Leonardo Da Vinci between 1503-1506, is of special significance to all three owners. The masterpiece has been on display at The Louvre in Paris since 1797.

Martha Cave with a smiling Andrew Calder after The Mona Lisa's Midway win - courtesy Bradley Photographers

The Cave training duo gives much of the credit for the equine Mona Lisa’s current form to three key people - Jemma Still who straps the mare at every race start, Bec Haill who rides her work exclusively at Warwick Farm and Andrew Calder who has become her regular race rider. The vastly experienced Calder is married to former successful jockey Natasha Collett, sister to Jason and Alysha Collett two of Sydney’s most respected riders. Natasha and Andrew handle the bulk of trackwork duties at Warwick Farm for Richard and Judy Collett who made the move to Sydney in 2022.

A jubilant group after Saturday's Midway. From left - Dave and Jen Hewlett, Michael Merriman, Jemma Still, Susie Castle-Roche, Andrew Calder, Martha Cave, and Jacqui Merriman - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

Andrew Calder has ridden a total of 1074 winners in three countries - 832 in NZ, 200 in Macau and the rest in Sydney. In the 2005/2006 season he finished second with 104 winners to Lisa Cropp on the NZ jockey’s premiership. His Gr 1 tally sits on twelve (7 in NZ and 5 in Macau). Trainer Gary Portelli who uses Calder’s services on occasions summed it up best of all when he said, “You can’t buy that kind of experience. He can ride at 55kgs and his work ethic is indisputable.”

Martha Cave happily reports that The Mona Lisa’s current purple patch has provided a significant boost to the wellbeing of husband and training partner Paul. The veteran horseman suffered a serious health setback in 2022 when a sequence of three strokes followed a lengthy period of heart arrhythmia. “It slowed him up for a while but he’s right back on top of his game,” said Martha. “He spends most of his time at our Mulgoa farm where he looks after all spellers and pre-trainers. He has a brilliant pony at the moment which enables him to ride out alongside the pre-trainers, something he enjoys immensely. He comes into the Warwick Farm stables from time to time but is quickly overcome by woman power. By the same token he’s the first person I call whenever there’s a problem at Curragh Lodge. He’s a great horseman and his input is invaluable. Thanks to The Mona Lisa everything is humming along smoothly in the Cave operation at the moment.”

Paul Cave, in trademark Stetson, with a smiling Kathy O'Hara after a win with Spanish Dream at Rosehill 14/09/2019 - courtesy Bradley Photographers.