Kentucky Derby 2017: Ranking the horses by name
4. Irish War Cry
Of all the war-related names, I like this one the most. Look I get it; you want your horse to appear as a tough guy. Races are battles, the Kentucky Derby is a campaign, and the entire Triple Crown is a war. But war names are mostly overrated and cheese-ball. I like this one, though, because it is unique. I don’t know what an Irish War Cry sounds like, but now I want to know and I think you probably do too. Plus, when the announcers say this name, it’s bound to get people pumped up.
3. McCraken
McCraken is a name that just rolls off the tongue. It has an air of cool to it and it makes me think of McLovin from Superbad (well most names that start with ‘Mc’ in them tend to do that).
The other part of the name makes me think of the mythical tentacle beast known as the Kraken, which is quite intimidating imagery.
Truth be told, McCraken’s name has nothing to do with either of those things and is actually named after a small town in Kansas where the co-owner of the horse often drives through.
2. Gormley
Gormley is such a guttural name; it’s just a really fun name to say aloud. It also reminds me of Gimli from Lord of the Rings. The great thing is this name actually has some background to it.
“Gormley” is a surname of Irish origin. The main sept of the clan originated in the northwestern county of Donegal and the modern barony of Raphoe, in that county. The sept was formerly known by their tribal name of Cinel Moen.”
Apparently the name isn’t directly derivative of Irish origin, but molded from the famous British sculptor Antony Gormley.
Next: Kentucky Derby 2017: 5 people to know
1. Practical Joke
If I owned this horse I’d probably worry that this name violates rule five, but I guess that horses can’t really be offended. I doubt that the owners of this horse actually think it’s is a practical joke, but with a name like that you can’t help but wonder if the competition actually takes him seriously.
In fact, maybe that is the play here; because of his name ownership thinks that everyone will underestimate the horse and that it will allow for an easy win. I personally think it would be pretty funny if a horse named Practical Joke won the Kentucky Derby, let alone any race at all.