[3] Bayern's dam Alittlebitearly was, as her name suggests, born prematurely on December 14, 2002,[4] which made her almost useless for racing purposes.

[6] His owner Kaleem Shah obtained the horse as a two-year-old at a training sale when his teenaged son, Arman, was impressed with the colt.

"[9](German pronunciation: [ˈbaɪ.ɐn]) Bayern was unraced as a two-year-old[1] and made his racecourse debut in a maiden race over seven furlongs at Santa Anita Park on January 4, 2014.

Starting with Napravnik up at odds of 12.9-1, he finished tenth of the eleven runners behind the Kentucky Derby winner, California Chrome.

He contested the early lead before taking a clear advantage entering the straight and drew away in the closing stages to win by seven and a half lengths from Top Fortitude.

Garcia took the lead from the start and set a steady pace before drawing away in the straight to win by more than seven lengths from Albano, with Untapable in fifth place.

After the race, the trainer, who said that he had considered keeping the horse to sprint distances, stated, "We tried to slow him down in the past, but now we know we just have to utilize his speed.

Bayern started quickly and set a strong pace against Tonalist but weakened badly in the stretch and was eased down by Garcia in the closing stages, finishing last of the ten runners behind the upset winner, V. E. Day.

On September 20, Bayern ran in the Pennsylvania Derby over nine furlongs at Parx, a race which featured the return of California Chrome, running for the first time since his defeat in the Belmont.

His opponents included the undefeated gelding Shared Belief, California Chrome, and Tonalist in a field which appeared dominated by three-year-olds.

Exiting the gate, Bayern veered sharply to the left, badly hampering Shared Belief and Moreno before taking the early lead.

In a closely contested three-way finish, Bayern prevailed by a nose from Toast of New York and a neck from third-place California Chrome.

He was dropped back to Grade II level in July and started favorite under top weight of 123 pounds in the San Diego Handicap at Del Mar Racetrack.

In August, he contested the Pacific Classic but though he led in the initial stages of the race, he faded after being passed on the turn by Beholder and finished second to last of 10 horses.