The four-year-old gelding will head to Rosehill Gardens with the top weight (59 kilograms) in a testing Highway Handicap (1800 metres) on Saturday.

The middle-distance galloper has been tested over a range of distances this preparation, including two wins in 1280 metre and 1600 metre races in Canberra.

Leading jockey Nash Rawiller will take the saddle when Gunga Din lines up for the $75,000 race in barrier nine as Dryden looks to claim another winner.

"He's one of the best jockeys in Sydney so you always put the best on when you can," Dryden said.

"We started [Gunga Din] last week to make sure he had a hard hit out going into this race over the 1800 metres. I think he handles them all."

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The Dryden-trained horse finished midfield in the Country Classic (2000 metres) at the Rosehill track last month, before dropping back to a benchmark 87 (1300 metres) in Canberra.

"I thought he raced well in Sydney last time without luck and he'll need a bit of luck [on Saturday] because he's got plenty of weight," Dryden said.

"Hopefully there'll be plenty of pace on him during the race. If that happens then I think he'll be competitive.

"He got a nice third in Canberra last week, so it's a race that'll suit him. It should go okay."

Dryden has sent Kosciuszko winner Handle the Truth for approximately a six-week spell in paddock after a lengthy preparation.

Meanwhile, former Canberra Cup winner Almost Court has retired ahead of his seven-year-old season due to soreness.

The Barb Joseph-trained gelding will retire at Princes Farm, where he'll be a companion horse for the Racing NSW's re-homing program.

Joseph and Jones Racing purchased Almost Court after he struggled to break his maiden in New Zealand but went on to win six of his first nine Australian starts for the stable.

The then lightly-raced gelding started his winning sequence on his Australian debut on the Sapphire Coast and finished with a bold front running performance to claim the $200,000 Canberra Cup in 2018.