# The Doctor who Traded Pork Bellies: Patrick Welton's Journey from Stanford Oncologist to one of Trend Following's Quiet Legends

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-derivative-1211538/the-doctor-who-traded-pork-bellies-patrick-welton-s-journey-from-stanford-oncologist-to-one-of-trend-following-s-quiet-legends
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-derivative-1211538/the-doctor-who-traded-pork-bellies-patrick-welton-s-journey-from-stanford-oncologist-to-one-of-trend-following-s-quiet-legends.md
Podcast: [The Derivative](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-derivative-1211538)
Published: 2026-05-21T17:39:16+00:00
Episode link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/rcm-alts-the-derivative/episodes/The-Doctor-who-Traded-Pork-Bellies-Patrick-Weltons-Journey-from-Stanford-Oncologist-to-one-of-Trend-Followings-Quiet-Legends-e3jn5v4
Audio file: https://anchor.fm/s/11908b3c/podcast/play/120346020/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-4-21%2F424630345-44100-2-06df2c988d79e.m4a
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Duration seconds: 5867

## Resource

In this episode, Jeff Malec sits down with Dr. Patrick Welton to trace his remarkable path from Wisconsin kid to Stanford oncologist to veteran futures trader and founder of Welton Investment Partners. Patrick shares how trading pork bellies and interest rate futures in the late 1970s to pay tuition evolved into a decades-long career shaped by mentors at Commodities Corp, relationships with legends like Paul Tudor Jones and John Henry, and a unique “outside inside trader” role that let him keep practicing medicine at Stanford while managing money. He explains how his medical background and scientific training influence his approach to risk, uncertainty, and decision-making, and breaks down Welton’s strategy mix across trend following, macro, short-term flow trading, and equity selloff protection. Along the way, Patrick and Jeff dig into the myths around trend following “dying,” why diversification and staying power matter more than narratives, how capital flows really drive short-term moves, and what it takes to survive for 30+ years in a business where most firms disappear. SEND IT! Chapters: 00:00-02:03 =Intro 02:04-09:40= Doctor to Trader: Patrick Welton’s Origin Story, From Wauwatosa to Futures and the ER 09:41-30:03= From 1987 Crash to Commodities Corp: How Patrick and Annette Turned a Side Hustle into a Trading Career 30:04-43:19= Doctors, Scientists, and Traders: Embracing Uncertainty, Reflexivity, and the Real Drivers of Trend Following 43:20-56:16= AI, Innovation, and the “CTA Winter”: Cycles, Flows, and the Future of Trend Following 56:17-01:14:19= Building Welton’s Playbook: Diversifying Alpha, Short-Term Flows, and the Art of Surviving as an Asset Manager 01:14:20-01:29:48= Alt Data, Capital Flows, and What Really Matters: Patrick Welton on Research, Edges,…

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