It might just happen Saturday night.

Hall of Fame driver John Campbell could hit the 9,000-victory plateau
and win his seventh $1 million Meadowlands Pace.

The Campbell Countdown has been on for weeks and through July 10,
Campbell is only 11 wins shy of career victory number 9,000. The only
question as to Campbell joining the select group with 9,000 or more
wins is when and which race.

When he records number 9,000, he will be only the sixth driver in the
history of harness racing to do so, joining Herve Filion [14,792],
Walter Case Jr. [10,435], Cat Manzi [9,456], Mike Lachance [9,184]
and Dave Magee [9,053].

The 47-year-old Campbell already dominates the all-time money
earnings list with $205,897,890 [Lachance is second with $143
million] thanks in no small part to the fact that he has driven the
winners of 19 million-dollar races, including six editions of the
Meadowlands Pace.

On Saturday night, he will pilot the 8-5 morning line favorite, Mach
Three, in the 26th edition of the Meadowlands Pace.

It marks the 20th anniversary of Campbell's first Meadowlands Pace
victory with Hilarion.

"Time has just flown by, it's just amazing," Campbell said. "The
older you get, the quicker it goes by."

Not that time has dulled his skills. Campbell is still one of the
most in-demand catch drivers at the Meadowlands and will be appearing
in his 22nd consecutive Meadowlands Pace.

His six Pace winners span three decades. In addition to Hilarion, he
won in 1989 with Dexter Nukes, 1994 with Cam's Card Shark, 1995 with
David's Pass, 1999 with The Panderosa and 2001 with Real Desire.

Mach Three, Campbell's drive this year, drew the rail.

"I guess it's okay," said Campbell. "The rail at the Meadowlands is
actually kind of difficult. He's going to be used quite a bit more in
the first part of it than he was in his elimination, I believe. Well,
if you don't start him up at gate, he's pretty good. I had to leave
with him a little harder than I would have liked to in the [New
Jersey] Classic. But since that time he's quite a bit more race-wise
than he was then. The other night when I left the gate, he was very
controllable, and it showed in the way he finished."

Although he has the favorite, Campbell is well aware of the
competition in this year's Pace.

"McArdle has raced very well all year," Campbell noted. "He's very
handy, and I know he's going to be a factor in the race. Pacific
Titan came from a long way back to be second, and he raced very well
in Canada, although a lot of people didn't notice it just because he
was back in the field. Those are the two [to watch]. A horse like
Three Olives has knocked around at a high level for two years, and
he's a horse that you don't want to make a mistake in front of."