Trainer Roger Varian (right) wants the ground to ease before committing Kingston Hill to the Irish Derby.

By Simon Jackson.

Roger Varian is going to wait until Saturday morning before confirming that Investec Derby runner-up Kingston Hill will take his place in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby at 5.30pm.

Kingston Hill is set for a rematch at the Curragh with his Epsom conqueror, Australia, who finished a length and a quarter ahead of him on good ground on June 7.

But with the going at the Curragh remaining good to firm despite 5mm of rain falling on the racetrack on Thursday night, Varian has revealed that he is going to wait to see any results of the showers forecast for Friday night.

The Curragh’s website on Friday forecast: ‘Some hazy sunshine this evening, but some heavy and thundery showers too, these mainly over Munster, south Leinster and south Connacht. The showers will become more scattered and lighter overnight.’

Varian said: “We need a bit more rain for him. I’m going out to Ireland tonight [Friday] and will look at the ground in the morning and assess things then,” the Racing Post report.

“The worry, from reports I’m getting, is that it is still pretty quick and that is a concern and I’m not going to run him on ground I am not happy with.

“It doesn’t need to be soft for him to run. Decent good ground will be fine for him.”

“The weather just hasn’t gone our way this year. There was a lot more rain forecast before Newmarket and again at Epsom. I just hope they get the forecast rain this time.”

Kingston Hill is priced at 7-2 in the boutique field of seven runners, where the betting is headed by Australia at 4-11 with the remaining five runners 16-1 or more.

Read ‘Horse Talk with Simon Jackson’ at London24 for the latest horse racing news.