Sunday 29 March 2020 11:40, UK
WBO super middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders has apologised after a video emerged of him appearing to condone domestic violence during the coronavirus lockdown.
Footage showed the 30-year-old, who retained his title by beating Argentinian Marcelo Esteban Coceres in Los Angeles last November, working out on a punch bag in a barn.
During the video, Saunders advised men on how to hit their female partners if tempers flared during the ongoing lockdown, which resulted in a fierce backlash on social media, to which he responded on Saturday night.
"I would never condone domestic violence and if I saw a man touch a woman I would smash him to pieces myself," Saunders said in a post on Twitter.
"I have a daughter and if a man laid a finger on her it would be end well.
"Apologies if I offended any women stay blessed."
Saunders had been scheduled to fight Mexican superstar Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez in May, but the contest was postponed due to the pandemic.
