2006 Hambletonian Day at the Meadowlands

"When I saw Cat (Manzi) leave with Berto Primo, I wanted to get on Brian’s [Brian Sears with Mr Pine Chip] back and follow Mr Pine Chip because I knew he’d be up in the race," said Campbell. "When they bunched up around the last turn, he was full of trot and I knew he was going to pass somebody when I asked him because he was really full of himself at the head of the stretch. Blair (Burgess) and (his wife) Karin have done a tremendous job. He had a nail in his foot. They weren’t sure if he was going to be able to race last week. We got through last week. They had him at the top of his game. That’s really difficult to do. Besides the soreness and the stress factor, to get a horse back at this level and set a track record, all the credit goes to Karin and Blair. The fractions were stiff enough. When I saw the half at 54.3, I thought that that was a good enough clip that if my horse delivered what I thought he could do, that he’d be tough to beat."

"It’s always been fun," the native of Ailsa Craig, Ontario who has called New Jersey home for more than 25 years. "It sure beats working for a living. Obviously, I’ve gotten some better opportunities this year and we’ve been able to advantage of those. This is the ultimate; this is what we all strive for in this game, to be in this race and get to where we’re standing here today."