Cut off by the owner of his establishment.

What a disappointing weekend for fans of horse-racing: Ticket holders were at an all-time high for the Belmont Stakes on Saturday when it was announced the day before that the potential Triple Crown winner, I’ll Have Another, wouldn’t actually be going for another round. The horse was officially retired, according to owner J. Paul Reddam and trainer Doug O’Neill during Friday’s press conference, thanks to a case of front-leg tendinitis. Ouch. (Luckily, they don’t shoot horses—do they?)

Suddenly, most of the 100,000 patrons planning to storm the Belmont were less than interested in making the trek out to Saturday’s races. We heard rumors of ticket prices dropping to $1 as people tried to unload their seats quicker than their bids on a lame mare. In the end, all that anticipation—post-Preakness and Kentucky Derby—turned out to be an All-or-Another affair. Does anyone even know which horse wiped up the winnings?

Well, one crippled horse doesn’t have to ruin the whole weekend. There were plenty of other games afoot: Chris Brown and Rihanna circling each other at Jay-Z’s 40/40 club, watching the Heat beat the Celtics; the soccer match between Croatia and Ireland that had New York Giants lineman David Diehl so intoxicated that he had a fender bender with his BMW—and then tried to lie his way of the accident to the police; and the Manny Pacquiao and Tim Bradley boxing match, of course.

Still, none of these games could hold a candle to the Belmont Stakes we had imagined in our minds: One in which the climatic scene involved I’ll Have Another winning by a horse’s hair, and the film right’s immediately optioned by the Weinstein Brothers.

I'll Have Another at press conference about his retirement (MSNBC)

In light of the news today that chestnut thoroughbred I'll Have Another--a fan favorite for the Triple Crown, would be dropping out of the Belmont Stakes--owner J. Paul Reddam scheduled a 1 p.m. press conference at the track. Here is how it went down:

The press announcer came on the loudspeaker at 12:55 and told everyone to keep their voices down because of the horses in the stable. "If anyone is yelling their press credentials will be revoked."

Trainer Doug O'Neill came to the stage and announced that I'll Have Another has officially retired due to an injury this morning. "As you can see, the horse is fine," he said, as the press was shown the horse being hosed down and trotting.

"This is extremely tough for all of us. Though it's far from tragic, no one died or anything like that, it's extremely disappointing. I feel so sorry for the whole team. We've had such an amazing run."

So what was the issue? O'Neill said that the team noticed a "loss of definition" in the horse's front leg on Thursday, but took him out to the track this morning after the swelling went down.

Owner J. Paul Reddam came out and explained that the horse ran fine this morning, but Mr. O'Neill noticed inflammation (possibly due to the scratch that he referred to in the Dan Patrick Show), and recommended calling the vet. "The issue with the horse seemed to be tendentious in his left front leg," Mr. Reddam told the crowd.

Someone asked if this was different than a bowed tendon.

"We would never have a horse race on a bowed tendon," Mr Reddam replied.

"You could give him three-to-six months and start back with him," with Mr. O'Neill admitted, but said that the team unanimously decided to retire I'll Have Another.

Mr. Reddam also told the press that the horse could have ridden tomorrow, but they want to exercise caution. "He's not lame, he could have run,"  the owner said somewhat regretfully. "We have to do what's best for the horse. If he can't compete at the top level – he's done enough. History is going to have to wait for another day."

Mr. Reddam also told viewers that he would be in the stands tomorrow, but "only as a fan."

"I'll Have Another" bathed this morning in preparation for workout, before official announcement of his drop from the races (Getty Images)

Following the tragic news on The Dan Patrick show this morning that potential Triple Crown Winner I'll Have Another would NOT be racing at Belmont due to a leg injury, more information has slowly leaked out.

Mr. O'Neill said that the horse's injury was "not tragic, but a huge disappointment." When Mr. Patrick asked if this was the three-year-old colt's  last race, Mr. O'Neill replied, "If I had to wager … I would say yes."

The horse will be walked in front of the press during an impromptu conference at 1 p.m. with owner J. Paul Reddam, to alleviate press fears that the horse is fatally injured.

I'll Have Another...out of Belmont races?

On Dan Patrick's radio show this morning, horse trainer Doug O'Neill claimed that fan favorite I’ll Have Another will be kept from racing at the Belmont Stakes this weekend, ruining the horse's chances at the Triple Crown.

So far, the story has been kept mainly on Twitter, put we expect an explosion any moment, especially since The New York Times has just updated it to Breaking News:

According to the tweet, the horse's leg has been hurt, and the Preakness and Derby winner's owners are not taking any chances.
More on this story as it develops.

Update: Dan Patrick tweeted about I'll Have Another's disaster 29 minutes ago; 10 minutes ago Belmont Stakes posts a picture of I Am Lava Man, another horse in the race, doing stretches. They have not responded to the inquires regarding the most-hyped horse possibly dropping out.

I'll Have Another washing off for the big show.

It’s June, and yet we’re still wearing our London Fog raincoats and carrying around our Brollys. It’s almost as if New York’s weather gods didn’t get the memo that it’s Hamptons season, and some of us don’t like getting soaked waiting for the Jitney.

Another thing seasonal annoyance for New Yorkers is traffic created by out-of-towners, and this week’s double-whammy of President Barack Obama’s visit on Monday and that of his wife, Michelle Obama, later this week has the city grumbling about how to get crosstown. A little respect for our POTUS? Not during 6 p.m. rush hour, darling. Your cab ride will end up costing you more than a private trip on Air Force One.

Of course the sniping about this dilemma was the loudest—where else—at Serafina, during a party for Ramona Singer and Sonja Morgan. This week was the premiere of the fifth season of The Real Housewives of New York City, and after several tours around the charity circuit, we’re inclined to believe that these ladies might be offering us the most “real” reality television on offer, which is to say that there are is a vast amount of white wine spilled in their wake, no matter what the occasion. Now that the show has Aviva Drescher, Heather Thompson and Caroline Radziwill, the claws have come out: Ms. Drescher has one leg! Ms. Thompson talks too much! Ms. Radziwill is a Kennedy by marriage! This can only foretell tragedy and pathos. We can almost hear Andy Cohen gleefully rubbing his hands together and laughing.

Speaking of ladies on bad behavior, Gwyneth Paltrow, that shining beacon of all that is good and urbane in the world, managed to slip the n-word into a tweet yesterday. Just confirming our suspicions that celebrities shouldn’t tweet without running it by their publicity team first, Ms. Paltrow put up a picture of Jay-Z and Kanye West performing in France under the caption “Ni**as in paris for real.” Ms. Paltrow was somewhat saved by record producer The Dream tweeting from his personal account that he was the one who had made the inflammatory remark from Ms. Paltrow’s phone. That’s why friends don’t let friends tweet for them! Or another possible lesson: Don’t tweet out the names of songs that have the n-word in them, even if you think you are being complimentary. Perhaps she believed she had immunity from racial slur blowback because she happens to be making an album with her “good friend” Jay-Z. But we don’t think it works that way.

But one thing this week we won’t be complaining about: the Belmont Stakes, where I’ll Have Another will attempt to become the first Triple Crown winner since the late ’70s. After winning the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, I’ll Have Another is on course to become the next Seabiscuit. Or perhaps SeaTriscuit, since this chestnut horse has lower doses of sodium and at least half the calorie count as the original. Of course, you never know what goes into these horses ... especially right before the races. (Something that HBO’s Luck tried to expose in its drama about horse racing before it fell victim to a severe case of dramatic irony and was shut down over the mistreatment and death of at least of three its own horses.) I’ll Have Another’s trainer, Doug O’Neill, has been found guilty of drugging his horses with carbon dioxide in 2010, and he’ll be facing a 45-day suspension from the racetracks. But of course, this won’t go into effect until after the Belmont.

On the other hand, I’ll Have Another’s jockey, Mario Gutierrez, is a real underdog hero, the type Hollywood and Stephen Spielberg would love to get their hands on. Starting as a jockey in Mexico City, Mr. Gutierrez made his way up to Vancouver, winning titles for racing along the way. His first reaction to seeing his champion partner? Well, that varies. He’s told the BBC, “From the first time I met him, I knew he was the one.” Other stories have the introduction less glamorous, with Mr. Gutierrez saying, “I don’t even know who that horse is, but he’s a freak.”
Harsh words, Mr. Gutierrez. Maybe you should audition for next season of Real Housewives?