Trainer Aidan O'Brien said Thursday that Mendelssohn leaves Monday afternoon from Ireland for his trip to Churchill Downs to start May 5 in the Kentucky Derby. Mendelssohn will need to clear quarantine upon his arrival in Kentucky and, O'Brien said, is expected to have only two days of morning training at Churchill, on Thursday and Friday, before his Derby start. That is not at all an atypical schedule for an O'Brien-trained international shipper, and O'Brien has won major races all over the world.

Mendelssohn's last three wins have come in Dubai, Ireland, and California, where he won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf last fall. His 18 1/2-length romp March 31 in the United Arab Emirates Derby, his dirt debut, not only landed him a slot in the Derby starting gate, it vaulted him into the top list of contenders. 

O'Brien said Mendelssohn "had a couple very easy weeks" after returning to Ireland from Dubai, but that the intensity of his training had recently picked up. Mendelssohn is due to have his last major piece of exercise in preparation for the Derby this weekend.

Ryan Moore, like O'Brien seeking his first taste of Triple Crown success, is booked to ride Mendelssohn at Churchill.