Confident Volo won his second straight preliminary in the Bobby Weiss Series for sophomore trotting males on Monday afternoon, April 13 at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania, but Captain Vodka earned the major honours on the day by beating two other first-round winners and taking a new lifetime mark of 1:54.4 in another of three $24,305 series events.
Captain Vodka, a Captain Corey-Agro Dolce gelding trained by Robert Baggitt Jr., had a three-race win streak over five month broken with a hard-luck, two-move fifth in the first Weiss leg. But on Monday, he was back in the win column for Baggitt and partners for Christine Baggitt of Bangor, Pennsylvania and J L Sadowsky of Bonita Springs, Florida.
He was parked to a :27.2 opener for command, after which driver Ridge Warren was able to back off the half to :57.4. The pace sped up to three-quarters in 1:25.4, and through the stretch Captain Vodka absolutely left no doubt of his supremacy this day, winning by 3-3/4 lengths over two other first-leg winners. Phoebus Hanover (Tyler Buter) was second and the previously-undefeated Dilly Hanover (Braxten Boyd) was third after racing inside and appearing in tight quarters in the lane. The winner paid $13.40 as the 5-1 second choice.
Confident Volo is now unbeaten in three 2026 starts after winning in 1:55.4, with identical back quarters of :28.3. The Bar Hopping-Context gelding, second choice in the betting at odds of 7-5, was quite good but he also literally “got the breaks,” as five of seven rivals miscued, including wagering choices ranked 1-3-4-5. Tyler Buter, defending Pocono driving champion and ahead again this year, was in the sulky for trainer Todd Buter and Oldford Racing of Port Huron, Michigan. Confident Volo paid $4.80 to win. Captain Micah (Matt Kakaley) stayed flat to finish second, 3-1/2 lengths behind, with Wukong (Braxten Boyd) a distance third as one of the breakers.
The other Weiss section went to series newcomer King Of The Wind, who was five-wide early and on the rim until the three-eighths before taking control of the throttle. Driver Anthony Napolitano kept the Walner-Wind Stroll gelding going on the point, withstanding favoured Bee Positive (Tyler Buter) by three parts of a length in a lifetime best 1:55.1 for hot trainer Joe Bongiorno and El Dorado Stables of Ft. Myers, Florida. Now two-for-four in this career, the lightly raced winner was the 7-2 second choice on the toteboard and paid $9 to win. Storm Hanover (Todd Schadel) rounded out the top three.
Anthony Napolitano got a tremendous performance from the four-year-old Cattlewash-Ubettergo Go mare Worklifebalance, a New Jersey heroine last year at three, to end Raspalia N’s six-race North American win streak in 1:50 in a $24,306 conditioned pace for distaffs. The field was five in, three out at the :27 quarter, with Worklifebalance the last to the front approaching the :55.1 half. Raspalia N was on the winner’s back to and beyond the 1:22.1 three-quarters and fought on gamely, but Worklifebalance ended the win skein of her foe by a head for trainer Noel Daley, co-owner with KDP Stable of Westlake Village, California.
Raspalia N was knocked down to the shortest odds possible, and in upsetting that rival Worklifebalance paid $51.80 to win, combining with first race winner Xmarxthespot ($91.60) to give Pocono its first 2026 day of two $50+ win prices.
Many-time Pocono champion George Napolitano Jr. drove three winners on the 14-race card, including two for the meet’s leading trainer and only conditioner with a pair of Monday victories, Per Engblom. Driving doubles were recorded by Simon Allard, Braxten Boyd, Anthony Napolitano and Ridge Warren.
The Weiss Series fillies will race their second preliminary round on the Tuesday 1 p.m. card, with four divisions of trotters and three of pacers looking to earn spots in their $50,000 USD Weiss championships at the end of April.
(With files from PHHA/Pocono; photo of Captain Vodka winning on April 13)