Well-bred sprinter Oxley Road will be racing for his career when he steps out at Flemington.
The Peter Moody-trained galloper is set to run in the CARM Trophy (1000m) on Saturday in a bid to turn his form around.
Oxley Road has raced on 14 occasions, registering three wins and four minor placings, with all bar two of his starts being in stakes races.
A winner on debut at the Rapid Racing meeting in January 2021, the only other time Oxley Road has raced in a grade less than Listed company was when second, first-up, over 1100m at Flemington at his fourth career start.
Along the way, Oxley Road has picked up the Group 3 Zeditave Stakes (1200m) at Caulfield and the Group 2 Caulfield Sprint (1000m), along with a third-place finish in last year’s Group 1 Oakleigh Plate (1100m) at Caulfield.
Oxley Road has been out of the winner’s circle since October 2021 and has finished in the second half of the field in his past five runs.
Resuming from a spell, Oxley Road finished a fading last in the Group 2 Rubiton Stakes (1100m) at Sandown on February 11, a race he finished second in 12 months earlier.
Moody’s assistant trainer Catherine Coleman said Oxley Road ran out of condition first-up and hopes the lesser company, and back to 1000m on Saturday, will be to his liking.
“He’s at that crossroads in his career where if he doesn’t perform on Saturday, we’ve seriously got to have a look at his future,” Coleman said.
“We have given him the benefit of the doubt first-up. He did have a good blow after that, so hopefully he has improved in that regard.
“And he raced on a lot of wet tracks during the spring, so that is what we’re putting his form down to, but now it’s coming down to that deciding factor (of retirement) and he’s running out of excuses.
“He needs to step up.”