LOS ALAMITOS RACE COURSE, CYPRESS, CA— Owned by James Sills and AA Horse Racing Inc., reigning AQHA Champion 3-Year-Old Filly Shaken Goin On proved that a new year hasn’t changed her winning ways, making a triumphant 2026 debut Sunday night at Los Alamitos. Defending her title in the $40,000 Miss Princess Handicap (G2), the superstar mare—who was also the 2025 PCQHRA Horse of the Year—led gate-to-wire to secure her second consecutive win in this prestigious event for fillies and mares.
Breaking sharply from post position three under regular pilot Justine Klaiber, Shaken Goin On immediately asserted her dominance. The daughter of Freighttrain B surged to a 3/4-length lead in the blink of an eye, opening up a clear advantage on a competitive field of distaffers. While Larry and Bobbie Rice’s AJ Flawless launched a late, powerful bid to close the gap, the champion was never headed, crossing the wire a measured half-length in front.
Shaken Goin On covered the 350 yards in :17.490, earning $22,000 for the win. The victory marked her fifth career stakes win at the Orange County oval and pushed her lifetime earnings to $434,220, improving her career record to 11 wins from 18 starts.
“She felt really good,” said jockey Justine Klaiber. “She broke good and ran away from them really quick right off the bat. She finished strong. She likes the pressure. I feel like she gets faster when she gets a little pressure on her.”
For winning trainer Eddie Willis, the victory was the perfect start to Shaken Goin On’s 4-year-old campaign.
“You keep them over and you don’t know how they’re going to run back because it’s another year,” Willis noted. “She’s pretty solid. She doesn’t make any mistakes and is real sound, and so here we are. This is the first race I wanted to run her in for 2026, and we want to catch about three or four more races out here.”
The victory in the Miss Princess is the first step in a larger summer and fall mission at Los Alamitos. Willis revealed that his primary target for Shaken Goin On is the Grade 1 Mildred Vessels Memorial Handicap on Saturday, September 12. The 400-yard classic is among the nation’s premier races for older mares, and Willis would like nothing more than to see Shaken Goin On come out on top in the “Millie.”
“The Millie Vessels is the reason I kept her here,” Willis explained.
Shaken Goin On finished third in the Mildred Vessels last year during her championship run, and her connections are eager to make amends in the 2026 edition. If Sunday’s performance was any indication, the “Miss Princess of Los Alamitos” is well on her way to another big season. The Mildred Vessels also offers a presumptive berth to the Grade 1 Champion of Champions. Willis won last year’s renewal of that race with Reliance Ranches’ Hott Temptation and is looking for a repeat victory.
However, tonight was all about Shaken Goin On’s anticipated return to action.
“I’ve had four generations of this family, so they’re special to me,” Willis said. “It began with Shake N Quack, who is the granddam of Shaken Goin On’s mother, Shaken Pappasito. It’s a great family.”
Ridden by Cesar Franco for trainer Marc Jungers, AJ Flawless earned $9,000 for her gritty second-place finish in her Los Alamitos return. The winner of the Lobo Derby at The Downs at Albuquerque last year, AJ Flawless was making her first California start since winning an allowance race here in September 2024. She competed at various tracks last year, winning three of her eight starts. With her Miss Princess earnings, the 4-year-old by Apollitical Jess has now banked $76,503.
David Hinkins’ hard-knocking mare VGK Zigfield Follies finished third, followed by Quick She Is, Val Baby, and Budder Off Friends.
By Los Alamitos Publicity
