Vasquez wins Martha Washington with Camila Princess, Not Surprising with Gemonteer

With a little help from the stewards, jockey Miguel Vasquez swept both stakes on Saturday’s card at Gulfstream Park, winning the $100,000 Martha Washington aboard Camila Princess via the somewhat-controversial disqualification of Midnight Soiree and taking the $100,000 Not Surprising with the lightly raced Gemonteer.

Midnight Soiree crossed the finish line three parts of a length in front of Camila Princess after the pair engaged in a bumping match through much of the final furlong of the one-mile Martha Washington. Both horses appeared to contribute to the incident equally, with Camila Princess also losing her best action a couple of times when leaping over tire tracks on the course in late stretch.

After a long deliberation, the stewards reversed the original order of finish, awarding Camila Princess the victory. Whiteheelgirl finished third.

Camila Princess, a 3-year-old daughter of Animal Kingdom, paid $3.

“My horse showed a lot of heart,” said Oscar Gonzalez, who trains Camilla Princess for Grupo 7 Racing.

Vasquez didn’t have things much easier with Gemonteer, making only his third career start for trainer Jena Antonucci. Gemonteer set the early pace, then had to fight off an extended challenge from Shana Tova before pulling away to a 4 3/4-length victory in the one-mile Not Surprising. Tactical Pursuit finished third.

Gemonteer, a 3-year-old son of Distorted Humor owned by Gelfenstein Farm LLC, paid $18.40. His final time of 1:35.61 over a firm course was more than three seconds faster than Midnight Soiree’s time in the Martha Washington.