The most competitive field of world class drivers ever to grace a harness racing oval in the province of Quebec will be at the Hippodrome 3R on Sunday (June 5) for the track's inaugural All-Star Drivers Tournament.
Hall of Famer John Campbell, American sensation Tim Tetrick, 2015 Driver of the Year in the USA, Yannick Gingras, Yonkers sensation Daniel Dube, 2015 Driver of the Year in Canada, Sylvain Filion, World Driving Champion Jody Jamieson and 3R’s leading reinsmen from 2015, Denis St-Pierre and Mario Charron, are the stars that will be performing.
They will battle in eight All-Star races on Sunday with $10,000 in prize money on the line.
“What a super group of top drivers we have for this first time event,” said Vincent Trudel, general manager at the Hippodrome 3R. “Never before has such a tournament like this with many of the best drivers in the world taken place not only in Quebec, but many tracks throughout racing. It will be very exciting for our fans, our horsemen and our staff to see this competition Sunday.”
The post positions were drawn earlier in the afternoon. All eight of the drivers will each start once from posts one through eight on the afternoon card. The point system is: 1st-50 points, 2nd-25 points, 3rd-12 points, 4th-8 points, 5th-4 points, 6th-2 points, and those that finish 7th and 8th get no points. If a driver loses a horse due to a scratch, that driver will get an average of his points from their other seven drives that day.
For both Campbell and Tetrick, competing in the tournament will be their first time ever driving at the Hippodrome 3R.
“I am very pleased with how the post position draw came out today,” said Trudel. “I want to thank all the trainers and owners who entered their horses today for the tournament on Sunday.
“We were hoping to have at least nine races on the program,” Trudel added, “and we have 10 full fields, which is very encouraging. I also must thank the drivers for taking time from their busy schedules to come to 3R to participate. We feel this is a great event that will help promote the Hippodrome 3R and our strong growing race program in Quebec.”
Post time is 1:30 p.m., but race fans will be treated to an autograph session with the eight drivers in the Clubhouse from 12:15 p.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday, then a special on-track introduction of all the drivers. The competition begins in the second race.
Race fans that come to the track will also be able to compete in a special contest to pick the winner of the tournament. Fans can enter the contest by selecting the winning driver and depositing the entry form in the drum for that driver. After the tournament, one winning name from the driver that finishes 1st, 2nd and 3rd will be drawn to share in $500 cash.
After each race on the program, there will live interviews by 3R’s Daniel Delisle and USA’s Steve Wolf with the drivers in the tournament.
Race fans will be able to watch and wager on the 3R program at most simulcast outlets and online wagering websites. A free race program is available by clicking here and there will be a free video feed of the race card available by visiting quebecjockeyclub.com.
(With files from QJC)