"We learnt a lot off that. He hasn't jumped off a really heavy track like that before. He usually jumps a bit better than that and hopefully there is plenty of improvement left in him."
The son of Tavistock is now set to fly to Melbourne where he will contest the Brendan Drechsler Hurdle (3500m) at Pakenham on July 21 before a potential tilt at the Grand National Hurdle (4200m) at Sandown on August 4.
"He's flying out on Sunday. We are staying in Cranbourne in Melbourne," Campbell said. "He trials on the 12th [of July] and his first race is at Pakenham on the 21st. It's over 3500m and is a $100,000 race.
"Depending on how he goes, there is the Grand National Hurdles two weeks later at Sandown.
"If he goes no good for some reason, we will just send him home, but if he shows enough, we will carry on for one more."
Campbell will travel across the Tasman with Gobstopper and they will be joined by jockey Emily Farr after she rides at Te Aroha on Sunday.
Farr will care for Gobstopper on their Australian campaign and Campbell said she and partner Shaun Phelan should take most of the credit for the gelding's jumping success.
"Emily and Shaun have done all the schooling," he said. "They have taught him to jump and have done all the work, I take no credit whatsoever, I am just the name on the paper really. They are champion people.
"Emily will be staying with him and riding him in the races. She knows him inside and out, so it works in great. I'll just keep going back and forth."
While Gobstopper's immediate plans lie with jumps racing, Campbell is eager to get him back competing on the flat and is eyeing another Australian target with his charge.
"He will have a maximum of two runs and then we will give him a break and probably try and get him to the Jericho Cup [4600m]," Campbell said.
"There's a race [on September 29] at Taranaki which would qualify him, so he will probably have one start prior to that, and then if he won that, we would go for the Jericho Cup in December."
- NZ Racing Desk
