EXCLUSIVE
Sports journalist Paul Kent has been visited by an entourage of friends and a doctor after he hit his head on the road during a wild brawl – before his supporters staged a bizarre diversion to help him avoid media crowds outside his home to wait.
The Fox Sports commentator was suspended from his role on NRL360 on Sunday after footage posted online showed Kent fighting with a younger man outside Rozelle venue Totti’s, in Sydney’s inner west, on Saturday evening.
In the clip, the 54-year-old can be heard shouting ‘doghead’ before charging at the other man, who throws the TV presenter’s head into the gutter.
Kent, who was fired by the broadcaster nine months after being accused of assaulting and strangling his ex-girlfriend, had only been reinstated as co-host of the show in February after being acquitted by the court.
Five friends, each traveling in a separate car, arrived in succession at Kent’s home in Lilyfield in Sydney’s inner west on Sunday morning, shortly after news broke that the journalist had been suspended.
Paul Kent (right) has been sidelined following the late-night altercation that left him with his head thrown into the gutter
One mate (pictured) said Kent was ‘okay’ but a ‘bit sore’ and ‘sick of people calling him names’
A doctor with medical equipment is seen leaving Kent’s home on Sunday
A friend escorted the doctor out of the house through a door that opened onto a back street
A friend with a Coke can in his hand (pictured) picked Kent up while another friend provided a distraction
The first man to arrive looked suspiciously down the street for journalists before walking into Kent’s $2.35 million property, carrying a small white paper bag full of items.
Once the men were inside, a sixth man – a doctor – arrived at the home in a black Mercedes. Kent’s friends then led the medic, who was carrying a stethoscope and a bag full of medical supplies, into the building through a back street.
About 40 minutes later, one of the men – who had been seen walking into the house just fine – left the house limping with a shirt covering his head to hide his face – in what appeared to be an attempt to pretend he was Kent was.
He then placed a wooden plank in the narrow passageway that runs along the side of the property to block the view of the rear garage door, which opens onto a rear alley.
The man then began stumbling down the hallway toward the reporters at a glacial pace, before getting halfway and turning back toward the house.
Aware that this strange ploy was a diversion, reporters rushed around to the back lane, where it was noticed that Kent was being chased away from the scene in the passenger seat of a friend’s car.
After Kent left, his supporters slowly began to trickle out of the building themselves.
A friend who appeared to pose as an injured Kent (pictured) to help the commentator escape the house through a back alley
NSW Police were called to the scene of the fight (pictured) and have since launched an investigation
The wild scenes broke out outside a pub on Evans Street, Rozelle, shortly after 11pm on Saturday evening
Two friends said Kent was doing “fine” but would not comment on what caused the fight.
One of the men joked that Kent had left the house to go to Garry Owens – a pub the commentator often visits in Rozelle – to ‘have a drink’.
Another friend who visited the house told Daily Mail Australia that Kent was “doing well” but was “tired of being verbally abused” by “people on the street” who had heard about the fight.
“He’s just a little sore,” the man said.
“He would like some privacy.”
NSW Police told Daily Mail Australia on Sunday morning they were aware of the video and have since launched an investigation.
Police also confirmed that officers attended the scene of the fight, which took place on Evans Street at around 11.20pm on Saturday evening.
“As part of this investigation, officers from Leichhardt Police Area Command spoke to a number of people and secured CCTV footage,” a statement said.
Meanwhile, neighbors have revealed that Kent’s home often hosts loud parties that continue into the early hours of the morning.
The two men became involved in the altercation outside Totti’s in Sydney’s Rozelle location
A video clip of what appears to be Paul Kent involved in a fight has emerged on social media
One woman told Daily Mail Australia there is always a “revolving door” of people coming in and out of the Kent estate – both men and women.
“The parties are always so loud and they just keep going,” she said.
The woman said she has called the police several times in the past about the noisy gatherings.
Another neighbor said she was kept awake until 2 a.m. on a Saturday morning late last month because of loud music.
However, neighbors said the house was quiet over the weekend and they did not see any police officers visiting the house.
The scandal broke after images of the brutal brawl began circulating on X on Sunday morning.
In the video, Kent’s associates were seen trying to intervene before he began exchanging punches with the other man in the middle of the street.
In a statement to Daily Mail Australia, a spokesperson said: “Fox Sports presenter and News Corp Australia columnist Paul Kent has been dismissed pending an immediate investigation.”
A friend (pictured) claimed Kent was back at the pub for a drink hours after injuring himself in the brawl
Kent was withdrawn from his News Corp newspaper column and role in NRL360 in 2023 after being charged with common assault and intentionally strangling a person without consent.
He was found not guilty of charges that he attacked and strangled his then partner Lucy Kennedy, 33, at his home in inner Sydney on December 12.
After a two-day hearing at Downing Center Local Court in Sydney, Magistrate Daniel Reiss told the court he could not find the charges proven beyond reasonable doubt.
Kent, who drove limousines for a Sydney funeral company while awaiting trial, told media he was keen to return to a “normal life” after his acquittal in December.
“The judge accepted what had happened, to the point that my lawyer was not even required to issue a final demand letter,” he said at the time.
‘It’s been seven months that I’ve had to sit there and feel like I’ve been wrongfully arrested [and] wrongfully accused, and I’ve had to sit there and watch our public reputation torn apart by people who used it as an opportunity.
‘Finally the truth is out there. It has cost me a lot, it has been a major setback in my life. But we all have our problems in life.
“This is my thing at the moment, so it’s now up to me to regroup and get back to my normal life. I can finally put this all behind me.’
Kent told the media that he simply wanted to resume a “normal” life after the Sydney ruling in December
