Mendelssohn always makes his presence felt – screaming, roaring, occasionally even studish – to and from the racetrack and in case anyone missed him Thursday morning at Churchill Downs the large crowd of onlookers to see the Irish raider made him a dead giveaway.

A huge group gathered outside Barn 17, where Mendelssohn and his three stablemates cleared quarantine Wednesday afternoon, to see the son of Scat Daddy make his first public appearance at Churchill. Cameras clicked, writers scribbled notes and onlookers snapped photos on their smartphones at 7:46 a.m. when Mendelssohn, Seahenge, Threeandfourpence and Deauville walked single file out of the open chain-link gate, onto the pavement and toward the gap near the five-eighths pole.