by Susan Higgins, for Scarborough Downs

Scarborough, ME — Drew Campbell, a perennial powerhouse at Scarborough Downs, secured career driving victory No. 3,500 at the Seaside oval on Sunday (June 29).

Heading into the day, Campbell needed two wins to reach his latest milestone and quickly got on the winning stride, grabbing one of the victories in the second race with a gate-to-wire performance behind the pacing mare Saturday Night Dancer.

Michael Newman photo

Drew Campbell, driving It Hurts Me, secures win No. 3,500 on Sunday at Scarborough Downs.

Campbell then had to fret the afternoon away, waiting until the 12th and final dash before tasting victory once again.

“When I looked at today’s card, I had thought I had a pretty good shot in the last race to hit it,” said Campbell, who was met in the winner’s circle by a crowd of cheering fans and horsemen. “But, honestly, I really have to tip my hat to the guys who get 4,000 or 5,000 wins. Man, it’s a lot of hard work.”

Campbell’s benchmark win came with the Adrian Wisher trainee It Hurts Me, who won in typical front-running fashion, Campbell’s trademark tactic. This strategy is so familiar to the local fans that the license plate on his truck proclaims, ISENDEM.

In other news, the Maine Sire Stakes 3-year-old colt division made its second appearance of the year at Scarborough Downs on Sunday.

Pembroke Newt (Heath Campbell) grabbed victory in the first of three divisions, scooting up the inside path to secure the 2:00.3 win and grab the lion’s share of the $10,089 purse. The son of Neutralize is owned by William Varney and trained by Valerie Grondin. Alittlebitcountry (David Ingraham) was second, while David The Saint (Mark Athearn) was third, beaten just a half-length.

Drama King (Dan Deslandes) remained undefeated on the season, grabbing his second consecutive stakes victory in convincing fashion with a 2:00.3 clocking. The son of B Dramattic, owned by James Smallwood, paid a generous $15.40 to win in the $10,316 split. Zip It (Kevin Switzer) was second and Dansan Clyde (Kevin Switzer Jr.) was third.

Fast Del (Gary Mosher), last season’s freshman champion, regained the winning stride with a 1:59.1 score in the $10,314 third flight. Sent to the gate as the bettor’s choice, the son of Fast Company is owned by Ben Bill And Will Stable. Blackmalin (Greg Bowden) recovered from last week’s disastrous trip to score runner-up honors, while Whip Chaser (John Nason) was third.

Live racing resumes on Thursday (July 3) featuring the 2-year-old trotting divisions of the Maine Sire Stakes program. Post time is 4:30 p.m.