The Kentucky Derby, a race whose starting gate caps at 20 horses and whose field is determined by a complex points system, lost another entrant Friday when Right to Party was scratched. The removal, reported by Deadspin, further thins a lineup already affected by prior withdrawals and shifts the competitive calculus for bettors and rivals alike. Right to Party’s absence opens a slot that no other horse can fill at this late stage—entries closed Wednesday—meaning the field will run at fewer than capacity. For the connections of horses that barely qualified, the scratch removes one obstacle; for the remaining contenders, it alters race dynamics without adding any new threat. The unresolved tension lies in why the horse was scratched—injury, illness, or otherwise—and whether this withdrawal signals broader instability in a prep season marked by defections and cancellations.