Gyngell spoke candidly of the fist-fight to 2GB's Ray Hadley on Saturday, saying he and his childhood friend have had plenty of blues in the past, but none as good as the one outside Packer's Bondi Beach home in May last year.

"He didn't come to my place to punch me, I went to his place to punch him," Gyngell said.

"I put him in more of a precarious position, which I shouldn't have done, being the person he is and the responsibilities and governance issues he has; I was peeved at myself for doing that."

The pair have been friends for 35 years, since they were students at Bellevue Hill private school Cranbrook, and Gyngell explained the relationship was closer to brotherhood than simply friends or business associates.

"I don't look at him the same way other people look at him ... When it comes to friendship and being like a brother, I'm a little bit older than him too, so maybe I get on my high horse sometimes when I shouldn't."

Gyngell was reportedly waiting outside Packer's home for 20 minutes before the media mogul arrived from Sydney Airport.

Witnesses at the scene described the violent exchange as instant, with profanities flying and a physical fight quickly escalating. The wrestling men fell to the ground, and were broken apart by people who looked to be Packer's bodyguards.

The pair released a blunt statement the next day confirming their continued friendship and refusing to comment further.

A photographer captured the pair brawling, the two men throwing and receiving punches. News Corporation reportedly paid over $200,000 for the rights to publish the images, sources told Fairfax Media.

The brawl is believed to have been over the breakdown of Packer's seven-year marriage to Erica last year and his friendship with model Miranda Kerr.