John Fashanu and Rudimental DJ Locksmith had to be separated after getting into a physical altercation on ‘Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins’.
The 57-year-old former Wimbledon footballer grabbed 32-year-old Locksmith – real name Leon Rolle – in a headlock after he claimed that Fashanu was the weakest member of the group participating on the second celebrity version of the Channel 4 military training reality show.
The bust-up happened during a game of "murderball" which involved the celebrity contestants having to fight for possession of a tyre and push it over the opposing team’s goal line and chief instructor Ant Middleton had to get between the pair to break up the fracas.
Speaking in The Sun newspaper, former ‘Gladiators’ host Fashanu said: "I strangled him – that’s showbiz. If you put two known winners together at that level, you’re going to have an explosion.
"I knew what I was doing! I attempted to strike him three or four times."
Locksmith added of the altercation: "He wasn’t able to control himself. I could see the red in his eyes. I could see his blood boiling. So as I was going for the tyre, he threw me to the ground and got me in a headlock and wouldn’t let go, he starts strangling me. It was a bit uncalled for."
Fashanu and Locksmith are joined on the programme by a host of other famous faces including Katie Price, Joey Essex, Anthea Turner, Helen Skelton, Brendan Cole, Nikki Sanderson, Jack Maynard, Lauren Steadman, BBC Radio 1 DJ Yasmin Evans and former world champion boxer Tony Bellew.
Ex-glamour babe Katie, 41, has admitted ‘Who Dares Wins’ is one of the hardest things she’s ever done and her stint on the jungle on ITV’s ‘I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!’ was like staying at a "holiday camp" in comparison.
She previously said: "The jungle was a holiday camp in comparison. I don’t like my mum shouting at me, let alone someone I barely know, in my face.
"I wanted to give it back, that was a challenge in itself. I had to show respect to my commanding officer.
"[The team were] amazing, terrifying, hard, in your face. It was scary.
"There was no place for egos or toilet breaks – this was full-on, nothing edited, gritty as it happened. They were, however, checking in on us all the time to ensure we were coping. This isn’t for the faint-hearted."