Right card for contest (4)
I believe the answer is:
race
'for contest' is the definition.
(race is a kind of contest)
'right card' is the wordplay.
'right' becomes 'r' (common abbreviation).
'card' becomes 'ace' (ace is a type of playing card).
'r'+'ace'='RACE'
(Other definitions for race that I've seen before include "The ... is not to the swift (Bible)" , "Rapid current" , "See 23" , "Care about contest" , "Rush" .)