Menuisier unafraid as he takes aim at Snowfall with Wonderful Tonight

David Menuisier is unfazed by the tough task Wonderful Tonight will face against Snowfall in the Darley Yorkshire Oaks on Thursday after he confirmed his star filly will clash with the dual Oaks heroine in the Ebor festival's day-two highlight.

Wonderful Tonight took her career to new heights with top-level victories in the Prix de Royallieu and the British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes last autumn, and has returned with a pair of impressive victories this campaign in the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot and the Lillie Langtry Stakes at Glorious Goodwood.

Menuisier had originally planned to take Wonderful Tonight to Deauville for the Prix Jean Romanet at the weekend but has rerouted her to the Knavesmire to take on Snowfall, who is the general 2-5 favourite following wide-margin victories in both the English and Irish Oaks and is one of three in the race for Aidan O'Brien.

3.35 York Thursday: Yorkshire Oaks racecard and betting

"I've been in Deauville for four or five days and I feel that the ground is pretty choked up and York will be nice and smooth. I'd rather run her on a better surface, rather than travelling and running on choppy ground," the trainer told the Racing Post.

"We could have done with a bit more rain but the ground has been drying very slowly over the last few days, so I think it will keep on drying slowly over the next few days. I'd be surprised if the ground was quicker than good by Thursday.

"She is not track-dependent as far as we know. She has always adapted to any sort of profile and York is one of the best tracks in the world. I know that some think it is a specialists' track but it is not something I really have on my mind going there."

Wonderful Tonight, who will be ridden by regular jockey William Buick, is a general 5-1 shot to land a third Group 1 of her career and features among a field of seven that also includes the Roger Varian-trained Eshaada and Ribblesdale Stakes winner Loving Dream.

Snowfall: dual Oaks heroine bids for another top-level victory in the Yorkshire equivalentCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

While Menuisier is happy to take on Snowfall at York, he was keen to stress that it remains a stepping stone for the Chris Wright-owned filly before her big seasonal target in the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp on October 3.

"I take on the opposition regardless of who they are," he added. "I respect them all but it's for the experts to make a judgement on Snowfall but not for me. I will keep on concentrating on mine, and make sure we always have our eyes on the big prize.

"I feel she needs a couple of runs before the Arc so she has to run this week, any race before is only a step forward to that. The filly who will turn up the first weekend of October is better than the one who will turn up at York."

Paddy Power 2-5 Snowfall, 5 Wonderful Tonight, 7 Eshaada, 10 Loving Dream, 20 Albaflora, 33 Divinely, 100 La Joconde

Confirmed runners and riders for the Yorkshire Oaks

Albaflora Rossa Ryan
Wonderful Tonight William Buick
Divinely Wayne Lordan
Eshaada Jim Crowley
La Joconde Hollie Doyle
Loving Dream Frankie Dettori
Snowfall Ryan Moore

If you want more on the York Ebor festival:

2021 Juddmonte International at York: the runners, the odds, the verdict

David Egan: Mishriff will be very hard to beat in Juddmonte International

Eight experts pick out their dark horses to follow at York this week

All the essential information for York's Ebor Festival 2021

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