Right to Party scratched from Kentucky Derby 2026 field. What we know
Right to Party, trained by Kenny McPeek, scratched form the Kentucky Derby 2024 field. Previous horses trained by McPeek won Oaks and Derby in 2024.
Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming Corp. veterinarians walked into thoroughbred trainer Kenny McPeek’s office just after morning workouts for Kentucky Derby contenders ended on May 1. Regulatory veterinarian Nick Smith told McPeek they hadn’t liked what they had seen in McPeek-trained Right to Party for the last three days.
They scratched him for being unsound due to right front lameness. McPeek-trained horses won both the Oaks and the Derby in 2024. Right to Party has only four starts in his racing career.
This would have been his fifth. He earned his spot in the Kentucky Derby Right off of a second-place finish in the Grade 2 Wood Memorial on April 4 at Aqueduct. The scratch comes after Fulleffort was scratched April 30 and Silent Tactic on April 29 .
Robusta, trained by Doug O’Neill, will now enter and run from post 5. O’Neill also trains Derby contender Pavlovian. This story will be updated.