Kentucky Derby favorite Forte has become the fifth of the 20 original entries in Saturday’s Run for the Roses to be scratched from the field.

Churchill Downs announced at 8:11 a.m. CDT Saturday that Forte would not run.

The winner of the Florida Derby was the morning-line favorite at 3-1 and was leading the live betting at 4-1 on Friday night.

Forte had a misstep during training on Thursday at Churchill Downs, and the four-time Grade 1 stakes winner was wearing a new three-quarter shoe on his right front foot when he went out for a gallop on Saturday morning. The colt was scratched after that turn on the track.

The New York Times reported Kentucky Horse Racing Commissioner veterinarians had scratched Forte after deeming the colt unfit to compete following a Saturday morning examination. The Daily Racing Form reported Forte’s problem was a bruised right front foot.

Without Forte, the field for the Kentucky Derby goes to 18, with Blue Grass Stakes winner Tapit Trice and Arkansas Derby winner Angel of Empire assuming the roles as the race favorites.

Santa Anita Derby winner Practical Move, which finished second to Forte in the Road to the Kentucky Derby points standings, left the field on Thursday because of an elevated temperature. Skinner was scratched on Friday for the same reason.

Continuar scratched out on Thursday because his trainer didn’t think the colt was in condition to run, and Lord Miles also left the field on Thursday when Churchill Downs suspended his trainer, Saffie Joseph Jr., after the death of two horses at the track.

Because of those entries leaving the race, three colts got into the Kentucky Derby field that weren’t among the original 20 qualifiers – Cyclone Mischief, Mandarin Hero and King Russell. Last year, Rich Strike won the Kentucky Derby as an 80-1 long shot after getting into the race because two other horses scratched out of it.

Post time for the Kentucky Derby is 5:57 p.m. CDT Saturday in Louisville, Kentucky. NBC is covering the race.

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.