As a CFO, you’re confident that Finance employees are performing at their very best. Would you bet on it?

Michael O’Leary, chief executive of Ryanair and famed egoist, didn’t put his money where his gift horse’s mouth was, to mix metaphors. At the latest Irish Grand National race — think the Kentucky Derby from across the pond — O’Leary’s horse Hear the Echo easily cinched the win against the odds of 33 to 1.

But did the multimillionaire place a bet on his horse? Not a dime.

“I thought he was going out for a run to keep himself warm,” said O’Leary. “Two people asked me earlier should they back him, and I told them no way.”

A lack of confidence like that is hard to fathom, especially given Ryanair’s track record when it comes to risk-taking — the company seized the opportunity to develop business immediately after the September 11th attacks and was a boon for the airline economy.

But the Ryanair exec didn’t completely lose out — the Irish Grand National hands out a prize of 195,000 pounds ($387,172 dollars), as well as a trophy from the previous year’s winner. In this case, that meant taking the trophy from Prime Minster Bertie Ahern, someone O’Leary frequently butts heads with.

You know what they say about business: If you can’t beat ‘em … beat ‘em in a horse race.

Tags: Bad bets, Financial confidence, Performance