OZONE PARK, N.Y. – The expectation of a wet track and a bevy of scratches should make Law Professor tough to beat Sunday as he seeks a repeat victory in the $150,000 Queens County Stakes going 1 1/8 miles at Aqueduct. In January 2023, Law Professor won the Queens County Stakes by 7 1/2 lengths over a good track and followed that two starts later with a 4 1/4-length victory in the Excelsior over a muddy Aqueduct main track. He began 2024 here with an allowance victory in the slop and overall, is 5 for 7 at Aqueduct. The field Law Professor will meet on Sunday is expected to look dramatically different than when entries came out on Dec. 18 and 11 names passed through the entry box. Film Star won the Robert Manfuso at Laurel Park on Dec. 21 and is not expected to run back, per trainer Linda Rice. Quality Chic is headed toward a race at Oaklawn Park, trainer Jason Cook advised. Repo Rocks and Surface to Air are both cross-entered in the $75,000 Kris Kringle Stakes at Parx on Tuesday and are expected to run there, according to their trainers. Lastly, trainer Rick Dutrow said if the Aqueduct main track is wet Sunday, he would scratch Masmak, an improving 3-year-old who has won two straight races. :: Bet the races with a $200 First Deposit Match + FREE All Access PPs! Join DRF Bets. All this will be welcome news to Rob Atras, trainer of Law Professor, who scratched from the Grade 2 Cigar Mile on Dec. 7 believing this would be an easier spot. “These horses are good horses, I’d rather only face one or two of them than six of them,” Atras said. “There’s no room for error. We still have to run an ‘A’ race.” On Oct. 25, Law Professor came off a 173-day layoff to win an allowance by a nose over the well-regarded Bendoog. Tabeguache, who finished third, came back to win his next start, and is back in Sunday’s field. “Turning for home it looked like we had the race but then Bendoog fought back,” Atras said. “What really impressed me was [Law Professor] laid it down. Off the layoff, he showed a lot of determination. I’m hoping he’s still got that because I think he’s going to need it Sunday.” Law Professor has a versatile running style and figures to be laying close to the pace. The two potential speed horses are Phileas Fogg and Unlimitedpotential. Phileas Fogg, claimed for $62,500 out of a fifth-place finish in a turf race on July 13, has won two straight allowance races on dirt for trainer Gus Rodriguez. One of those wins came in the mud going 1 1/8 miles. Phileas Fogg hasn’t run since Sept. 26 due to a throat issue. “We think he’s a nice horse, we really like the way he’s coming into this race, he’s training really good,” Rodriguez said. “We had a little something on his throat, everything is beautiful right now.” Tabeguache ended an eight-race losing streak by eking out a nose victory over Winit in a one-mile allowance on Nov. 24. Instant Coffee finished third in that race and is back in here and could be a threat if the proper pace scenario develops. Curbstone has some back races on dirt that could make him competitive. Back in 2022, he won a 1 1/4-mile allowance over a sloppy Churchill Downs track by 5 1/4 lengths. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.