Mendelssohn Moves Up in NTRA 3-Year-Old Poll
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Photo: Mathea Kelley/Dubai Racing Club
Mendelssohn, with Ryan Moore up, wins the UAE Derby by 18 1/2 lengths at Meydan
Voters appear to be coming around to UAE Derby Sponsored By Saeed & Mohammed Al Naboodah Group (G2) winner Mendelssohn, the only 3-year-old to move up in the latest NTRA Top 3-year-old Poll just 12 days out from the May 5 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1).
With the final prep races completed, this week's rankings were determined without any new race results and could foreshadow which Derby entrants will garner the most support from horseplayers when betting opens.
The increased support for Mendelssohn (11 first-place votes; 276 points overall) elevated him into fourth on the poll, overtaking Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G2) winner and last year's champion 2-year-old Good Magic.
Mendelssohn has won his last three starts, kicking off the trio with a one-length score in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1T) at Del Mar in November, adding the 32red Patton Stakes at Dundalk March 9, and capping the series with an 18 1/2-length romp in the March 31 UAE Derby. Bred by Clarkland Farm the son of Scat Daddy, out of Broodmare of the Year Leslie's Lady, is a half brother to four-time champion Beholder and grade 1 winner and top-10 leading sire Into Mischief .
The rest of the top 10 was unchanged from the previous week, with Justify the far-and-away favorite.
The full results for weekly NTRA Thoroughbred polls can be found on the NTRA website.