Ryan Moore says Mendelssohn ‘has the form to mount a serious challenge’ in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on Saturday.
The three-year-old son of Scat Daddy was a wide-margin winner of the UAE Derby on his latest start and Moore takes the trip to America to ride Aidan O’Brien’s charge despite it being Guineas weekend in Newmarket.
Drawn in stall 14, Moore is less than concerned with his stalls position and more worried about the opposition in what looks an above-average renewal.
Writing in his Betfair blog, Moore said: “Mendelssohn certainly has the talent to run a big race in Saturday's Kentucky Derby.
“He is a Grade 1 winner in America, he comes here on the back of a runaway Grade 2 win on dirt at Meydan in a track-record time, he has plenty of experience and tactical speed, he has the pedigree being a Scat Daddy half-brother to Beholder, and he has been trained specifically for the race.
“We do know that the form of his Breeders' Cup Turf win is working out very well. A lot of people were surprised we didn't go down the dirt route in Del Mar but we simply thought he wasn't ready for it at that stage of his career. And the patience seems to have been rewarded."
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On Mendelssohn, Andersen says: "Brilliant in United Arab Emirates Derby on March 31 winning by 18 1/2 lengths, but quality of rivals he faced must be questioned. Yes, he is trained by Aidan O’Brien, but this is a terribly difficult assignment, going from Ireland to Dubai to Ireland to Kentucky, in a matter of weeks when his rivals have not had to endure such extensive travel. Ryan Moore knows him well, but that may not be enough. Moore has won with 18 of 90 mounts in his career in North America, but is winless in 18 starts in dirt races."
Moore continued: “We know he stepped forward on that victory when winning on the dirt in Dubai, his best performance yet, and that his speed figures put him right up there with the best in this race.
“People are so excited by the race this year because it is one of the best renewals in a good while and and I think Mckinzie, just touched off by Bolt D'oro at Santa Anita in March, is the only big name missing here.
“So, in that context, of course it is a big ask for my colt, though he may just be up to the challenge.”
Mendelssohn will bid to become the first European-trained horse in history to win the 'Run for the Roses' and he disputes favouritism with the Bob Baffert-trained Justify, who is well drawn in stall seven.
Other leading contenders include Audible (stall five), Magnum Moon (16), Bolt D'Oro (11) and Good Magic (six).
Outsider Firenze Fire is in stall one and Combatant is widest of all in stall 20.
