Oddsmakers call it again in the North The Baby Bonanza

The oddsmakers picked a winner for a second week in a row, as favorite Carolina Quickstep stormed home in the second half to grab a victory in this week’s North The Baby Bonanza. This is his second consecutive stakes victory, and moves him up to a rank of 33 in the juvenile Turf Sprint division. The $33000 winner’s check boosts his career earnings to just over $81K, and he showed this week that he is definitely for real. The drought at the betting window continued, with the winner paying $4.90 $2.40 $2.10 across the board. The exotics were paltry, at best, paying $11.30 for the exacta and $17.80 for the trifecta.

As expected, Crackpot(GER) provided the early speed in this one, getting a fast jump at the gate that he parlayed into a single length by the half. Carolina Quickstep and Popping Bubbles were tucked in right off his tail, biding their time through the first half. As they hit the halfway mark, Crackpot(GER) began to visibly fade and the two horses stalking him made a bid for the lead. It was close up to the third call, but at that point, Carolina Quickstep found another gear, and simply walked away from the field for a two and three quarter length victory. Popping Bubbles held on gamely for second place. Raa’s Mambo(IRE) closed up from six lengths out at the half, but once again he ran out of real estate, taking third place, four lengths out at the wire.