When two of Australia’s most prominent business figures came to blows in broad daylight in May last year, it was the fight that stopped a nation.
And for the first time, James Packer addressed the now infamous punch-up during a breakfast event in Sydney on Tuesday, admitting he never should have resorted to violence.
“I should have never punched Gyngell outside my house,” James was quoted saying by the Australian Financial Review.
Adding, “I’ve made a bunch of mistakes, but in a business sense, I’ve had a go more than anyone else I’ve known.”
The casino mogul, who has recently been romancing Mariah Carey, wasn’t the only party to regret what happened last May.
Earlier this year during a chat with 2GB radio David said he felt “ashamed” about the fight.
And his wife, TV presenter Leila McKinnon, was less than impressed with his very public spat.
“Coming home to my wife, she said, ‘What happened? You’ve done what?’ And then she said: ‘You idiot.’”
The public fight occurred in May, 2014, when James had to be dragged off David, following a vicious fist fight that left both bruised and battered outside Packer’s Bondi mansion in Sydney.
The brawl erupted when James, 46, arrived home to find childhood friend David, 47, waiting for him. A nasty war of words broke out before punches began to fly. Police later fined the pair $500 for “offensive behaviour.”
Despite the fight, the pair have remained friends.