He broke his wrist in late July and missed the Hambletonian earlier this month, but news has come that John Campbell, the sport’s most accomplished reinsman, is scheduled to be back driving in pari-mutuel races much sooner than some had expected.
Campbell has told harnessracing.com that he plans to return to the sulky this weekend, three weeks after he broke his left wrist in an accident during a qualifying session at the Meadowlands Racetrack.
Campbell told harnessracing.com that he will drive on the Super Stakes Saturday card at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono and then at Tioga Downs on Sunday. The latter card will feature the Empire Breeders Classic finals for three-year-old pacers and Tompkins for two and three-year-old trotters.
"I went and trained Muscle Diamond this past Saturday (for trainer Brett Bittle at Winner's International) and I was happy the way it went, so I'm going to race Saturday at Pocono and Sunday at Tioga,” Campbell told harnessracing.com. "I'm looking forward to that, and hopefully back to normal.”
Campbell said he will drive this weekend despite still having to wear a cast on his wrist.
"I still have the cast on and don't get that off until the 26th, so I'll have to race this weekend with the cast on,” he said. "I've got it cut back where I can hold of the lines well. I trained three sets down there (at Winner's International) and it seems good.”
Included among Campbell's drives at Pocono on Saturday will be the three-year-old colt Muscle Diamond in the Colonial Trot and JL Cruze in the Sun Invitational. JL Cruze, who has not raced since winning the $443,800 Hambletonian Maturity on July 18 in a world-record 1:49.4, is riding a five-race win streak. The Eric Ell-trained JL Cruze broke with a 15-length lead in the stretch in an Aug. 11 qualifier at Harrah's Philadelphia, but then came back two days later to win a qualifier at Pocono Downs in 1:54.1.
"They're planning on racing him in that trot and you had to have a clean line in 30 days,” Campbell explained of the two qualifiers.
In the July 31 baby-race accident, Campbell was driving the colt trotter Drazzmatazz when he hooked wheels with a Jimmy Takter-driven horse and he was dumped to the track. At the time, the Hall of Famer had 116 wins this year, the most he has had in a single year since 2010. As a result of the accident he missed 19 drives that weekend at the Meadowlands and he also had to cancel a trip to Grand River Raceway in Ontario for the Industry Day card.
(With files from harnessracing.com)