On Saturday afternoon in Louisville, Ky., a Central Banker was under scrutiny. Investors with deep pockets were watching his every move, weighing odds on how he would perform under pressure.
But this was not a surprise meeting of the world’s financial leaders. Central Banker was the No. 9 horse in the ninth race at Churchill Downs.
Before California Chrome pulled away from the field to win the 140th Kentucky Derby, the 4-year-old Central Banker held off a furious charge by Shakin It Up to win the $400,000 Churchill Downs Stakes, an undercard race for slightly older horses. The victory, at 10-to-1 odds, was Central Banker’s fourth in 12 starts and brought his earnings total to more than $500,000.
Born in 2010, Central Banker is owned by Klaravich Stables, which was started by Seth Klarman, who runs the Baupost Group, a Boston-based hedge fund with about $30 billion in assets under management, and William H. Lawrence, the chief executive of the alternative investment adviser Meridian Capital Partners.
Mr. Klarman, who is also a minority owner of the Boston Red Sox, and Mr. Lawrence often give names to their horses that invoke the financial markets. Recently, they have named horses High Inflation, Volatile Markets, Carried Interest and Derivativecontract. Financial Modeling, a 3-year-old, finished fourth on Sunday in a race at Belmont Park in New York.
Mr. Klarman declined to comment on how he chooses names for his horses. Mr. Lawrence could not be immediately reached for comment.
The Jockey Club, which maintains the registry for thoroughbred horses in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, has strict rules governing eligible names. According to its rulebook, a foal’s name must be submitted by Feb. 1 of its 2-year-old year. Names cannot consist of more than 18 letters nor be made up entirely of numbers (numbers above 30 may be used if they are spelled out). Names cannot be in poor taste nor have clearly commercial, artistic or creative significance.
Central Banker’s name may have raised eyebrows on Saturday, but it is far from the first racehorse whose name has suggested financial ties. Spend a Buck won the Kentucky Derby in 1985. According to the website Horse Racing Nation, other racehorses have had names like Credit Swap, Street Trader and Sorry No Refunds.
