Brown, Clement square off in Chelsey Flower

ELMONT, N.Y. – Several promising juvenile fillies are entered in Sunday’s $100,000 Chelsey Flower Stakes, a one-mile turf race and the final stakes of the 38-day Belmont Park fall season.

Trainer Chad Brown, who ran one-two in last year’s Chelsey Flower, has the uncoupled entry of Beat the Benchmark and Create a Dream, while Christophe Clement, who won the 2014 Chelsey Flower, has Warrior Hall and Noble Ready among the 14 entered. Only 12 will start.

Beat the Benchmark, a daughter of Speightstown, was a debut winner sprinting at Saratoga in August. She then shipped to Woodbine for the Grade 1 Natalma, where she got bumped and had to steady coming out of the gate. She got squeezed again in the stretch while Victory to Victory came rallying outside to win that race. Beat the Benchmark was beaten four lengths.

“She had a tough trip in that race,” Brown said. “It was only her second start. I thought she ran well. Thought about the Breeders’ Cup momentarily, but this seems like a more logical step in her development.”

Beat the Benchmark did handle a “good” turf course at Saratoga, and that is likely to be the course condition Sunday.

Create a Dream, a Great Britain-bred daughter of Oasis Dream, was beaten a length in the Group 3 Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot before being transferred to Brown. In the Grade 3 Miss Grillo, Create a Dream rallied to finish third after bobbling at the break of the 1 1/16-mile race.

“I thought she was finishing pretty well in that race,” Brown said. “She exited that race like she needed it. I like the cutback to a mile.”

Brown doesn’t like that Create a Dream must break from the outside post.

Warrior Hall, a daughter of War Front, cost $1 million as a yearling. After running last in the slop in her debut, she finished second in a maiden race at Saratoga before winning her maiden here Sept. 23 going 1 1/16 miles.

“I thought she was impressive when she won the other day,” said Clement, who trains Warrior Hall for Robert S. Evans. “Can she handle the softer ground? War Fronts usually don’t. She’s trained very well. We’ll try and see what happens.”

Clement is also concerned about softish ground for Noble Ready, who finished second to Coasted in the P.G. Johnson Stakes at Saratoga on Sept. 1. She won her maiden at Delaware going 7 1/2 furlongs. Clement said he shipped Noble Ready to Delaware for the distance options that aren’t offered in New York in the summer.

Accepting, a son of Speightstown who brought $700,000 as a yearling, won her turf debut sprinting last out and came back with a series of solid works for trainer Jimmy Jerkens. About that Base, a daughter of Bellamy Road trained by Todd Pletcher, is trying turf for the first time.

Also in the main body of the race are Zero Zee, Chubby Star, Sensitive, Yorkiepoo Princess, Out of Trouble, and Old Line Gal. Little Miss Amy and Bellavias are on the also-eligible list.