Dr B Begins Season in Vagrancy

Cash is King and LC Racing's Dr B  is set to commence her 5-year-old season May 14 in the $175,000 Vagrancy Stakes (G3) going 6 1/2 furlongs for older fillies and mares at Belmont Park.

Dr B last saw action when posting a gate-to-wire score in the Go for Wand Stakes (G3) Dec. 3 at Aqueduct Racetrack, registering a career best 103 Beyer Speed Figure. She contested over a sloppy and sealed track in the one-turn mile test, building her advantage through each point of call to stroll home a 4 1/4-length winner.

Never worse than second in her last five starts, Dr B enters from a winter freshening and has consistently breezed at Parx Racing in Bensalem, Pa., in preparation for Sunday's engagement, most recently logging an easy half-mile in :51.77 on May 7.

Trainer Butch Reid Jr. said the daughter of Liam's Map   benefited from the break.

"The time off did her a ton of good. She's a happy and healthy horse right now so we're looking forward to getting her back," Reid said. "She ran fantastic in her last race; it was a lifetime best. The winter was coming so we decided right then and there to give her a break and gear her up for a very strong year this year. We have some big races in mind with her, and so far she's been training fantastic coming up to this first start of the year."

Adelphi Racing Club and Cutair Racing's New York-bred Funny How  will look to get back to winning form after having a five-race winning streak come to a halt with a runner-up effort last out in the April 7 Distaff Handicap (G3) at Aqueduct.

Trainer Ray Handal expressed encouragement in keeping her at graded stakes level based off her last effort, where she lacked room around the far turn and made a five-wide move to finish 1 1/2 lengths behind the victorious Mommasgottarun .

"It made sense after the last run," Handal said. "She ran her tail off against open graded stakes company, so I think we keep going this route until she says that she can't or is ready for another test to jump up. These grade 3 dirt sprint type of spots are perfect for her. She's training great coming into this, and I think it should suit her just fine."

Godolphin's homebred Caramel Swirl  (post 3, Junior Alvarado) will seek to make amends following a fourth-place finish as the heavy favorite in Tampa Bay Downs' Minaret Stakes Feb. 11.

The 5-year-old Union Rags   mare made two starts last year when second in the Ballerina Handicap (G1) in August at Saratoga Race Course following an allowance optional claiming victory here last May for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott.