(Spirited Justice captures ITOBA Stallion Season Fillies ‘Cap on Wednesday at Horseshoe Indy / All Photos by Coady Media)

From the Horseshoe Indianapolis Media Team / Tammy Knox:

Spirited Justice rallies home in ITOBA Stallion Season Fillies Randy Haffner Memorial at Horseshoe Indianapolis

SHELBYVILLE, Ind. (Wednesday, September 30, 2026) – Spirited Justice rallied all the way down the stretch to score the win in the 13th running of the $125,000 ITOBA Stallion Season Fillies. The race was named in honor of Randy Haffner, longtime owner, breeder, trainer, and stallion owner in the State of Indiana.

Spirited Justice and the red-hot rider Amir Mendoza began from post seven in the 10-filly lineup and immediately got a call from announcer John Dooley. She was one of several horses who headed out to the lead and settled in behind Wosie’s Promise and Santo Sanjur on the inside with Justiceontherail and Evin Roman tracking them on the outside. Spirited Justice was third and chose to stay to the outside as the field moved through the first turn of the one mile, 70 yard race. Woosie’s Promise continued to lead the way down the backstretch as Spirited Justice had a big hold on Mendoza. Even though his boots were ahead of his body, Mendoza kept the three-year-old filly under control and relaxed as the field entered the final turn.

Midway through the turn, Mendoza allowed Spirited Justice to start gaining ground. She was in perfect position at the head of the lane and was able to get by the early leaders. Eltinge and Marcelino Pedroza Jr. began closing in on the outside, but Spirited Justice had too much of a rally going, getting to the wire as a one and three-quarter length winner over Eltinge. Smokinghotjustice and Leading Jockey Fernando De La Cruz moved up from mid pack to finish third in a photo finish over Kaboom and Joseph Bealmear.

Spirited Justice paid $12.00 for the win. The Lantana Mob sophomore is owned by Keeley Chay Justice and was bred by her father’s Justice Farm, who has been the leading breeder in the state for several years. Spirited Justice is trained by Tomas Medina as she picked up her second win of 2026 and her fifth in 11 career starts. The filly now has more than $279,000 on her card, earning her third premier racing victory of her career, all at Horseshoe Indianapolis.

“It (the trip) was perfect,” said Medina of Spirited Justice’s journey in the ITOBA Stallion Season Fillies. “There wasn’t a lot of (early) speed in this race, so we had to stay close. The jock (Amir Mendoza) and I talked about that, and we needed to stay close. He rode her perfectly.”

Interviewed by Guest Analyst Matt Carothers following the race, Medina talked about her previous races where she stayed close early on but had a different outcome.

“This was a very different race today,” noted Medina. “She was part of the early speed last time out on the turf, but got tired. Before that, she was in sprints. I think she is better in the sprints because she has a lot of speed, but now I can say she’s good at the routes too.”

Spirited Justice was one of the very few horses Greg Justice retains each year from his breeding operation. He sends the majority of his yearlings to the sales, but said in an earlier interview, he wanted his daughters to have a horse. Spirited Justice was the one he and Keeley chose as her first horse as an owner. The other Justice daughter, Alexa, was the owner of her first horse, Smokinghot Justice, who finished third in the race. The filly was recently sold to the fractional ownership program MyRacehorse, who was making their first start with the filly. Shares are still available for ownership of Smokinghot Justice trained by Aaron West. Interested individuals may go to myracehorse.com or find the app for more details on becoming a horse owner.

As for the other graduate of the Justice Farm breeding program, Spirited Justice is just getting started.

“If she (Spirited Justice) is good and sound, then she will be here for Champions Day,” added Medina on the final premier race of the year for three-year-old Indiana fillies set for Saturday, October 24 at Horseshoe Indianapolis.

Mendoza earned his 19th win during the month of September and has been rapidly moving up the jockey standings, now in second behind De La Cruz, the defending leading jockey. Mendoza is a native of Panama, and this time last year, was still in his native country as a recent graduate of his country’s Laffit Pincay Jr. jockey school. He came to the United States in late December and lost his apprenticeship in July. He continues to make an impact and win races as a journeyman at Horseshoe Indianapolis.

The race was one of two on the program featuring Indiana sired three-year-olds. The Indiana Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (OTOBA) honored two former individuals who made an impact on Indiana racing, including Randy Haffner honored in the Filly Division of the ITOBA Stallion Season.

Haffner passed away last fall but leaves behind a long legacy in Indiana racing. He and his wife Lynn owned and operated a breeding farm in Pendleton, Ind. and had numerous stakes winners from their program in both the Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse ranks. He was also the trainer of the horse, Easys Night Beat, winner of the first pari-mutuel race for Quarter Horses in 1997 at Hoosier Park. Haffner, a former board member for ITOBA, is still listed as breeder on several horses who race at Horseshoe Indianapolis, showing the continued impact their operation has on the Indiana horse racing industry.

The 24th season of live Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse extends through Friday, November 13. Indiana’s top Thoroughbreds and Quarter Horses will be featured Saturday, October 24 during the seventh annual Indiana Champions Day. For more information on racing at Horseshoe Indianapolis, visit www.caesars.com/horseshoe-indianapolis/racing or find details on social media @HSIndyRacing.

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