One of the women involved in a wild brawl during the New York Knicks’ NBA title parade has alleged she was racially abused during the incident that went viral.
Manhattan came to a standstill on Thursday as the Knicks paraded their championship trophy to millions of fans in the city.
But inevitably, there were a few moments of mayhem and one of the most vicious exchanges was caught on camera showing two women fighting for position on a street sign before the parade began.
It was sparked by one Knicks fan, known as Reds Punch, ripping an unidentified woman away from the streetlight sign and throwing her to the floor after they had exchanged words.
The fan who threw the woman to the floor had climbed awkwardly down from a streetlight before forcing her foe out of the way. The other woman, though, refused to take her medicine. She jumped back up and pulled Punch’s shorts right down.
Instead of being embarrassed, Punch owned the moment as she held on to the street sign that she so desperately wanted to watch the parade from.
Two Knicks fans were filmed embroiled in a nasty fight during the Knicks championship parade
A fan tried to pull a rival’s pants and underwear off as a fight turned nasty in Manhattan
Reds Punch took to Instagram to flaunt the underwear that her attacker tried to rip off
As people around her shouted out in shock, Punch twerked away as the other woman repeatedly tried to pull the rest of her clothes off her.
At one stage, she even appeared to throw a punch to the back of the head and Punch just soaked it up, her grip of the streetlight remaining firm.
Punch, during an interview with TMZ, has now given her side of the story and alleged that she was racially abused by her opponent.
She said: ‘If you’re going to pull at my ankles and cause me to almost fall back and, when my hands are close to you, try and take my hands off so I can fall then before you get the chance for me to fall, I’m going to meet you on the floor. Come on, baby girl. You’re going to go first.
‘I was still on the pole while I was trying to come down after I threw her. She started pulling and yanking at me, trying to pull my underwear off, my pants off so let’s not forget about that.
‘And hitting me. She was punching me, hitting me in my head. I’m still twerking and I just wanted to make the best out of this situation. I got into a split. I was having a good time but she was still angry.
‘It got to a point where I had to defend myself. It’s not funny anymore. She’s really angry.
‘I am the “biggest, fattest, blackest b****” she ever met”, apparently. A gorilla. I was like “oh my gosh, what is her problem”. Punch also accused the other woman of making monkey gestures towards her.
‘I was having a good time,’ she continued. ‘I didn’t care what she had going on because I was out there for fun. I came out for the Knicks and to have a good time and nobody is going to stop me. Nobody is going to change my mood or my aura or who I am.
‘This could have been a bad situation for me, had I fallen when she pulled my legs but I didn’t.’
Millions of Knicks fans celebrated their NBA champions in Thursday’s parade in Manhattan
Fans were forced to scale garbage trucks and street poles to try and get a glimpse of the team
It was one of the most shocking scenes on a morning of chaos in New York, which culminated with mayor Zohran Mamdani welcoming the Knicks team to City Hall to congratulate the players on their historic achievement.
Mamdani presented keys to the city to the Knicks’ players, coaches, owners and staff.
Wearing a team jersey under his suit jacket, Mamdani said he and other fans ‘waited because we knew deep down in our sick, suffering hearts’ the Knicks would someday win.
‘For 53 years, we watched. For 53 years, we waited. Now, we won,’ Mamdani said.
Timothee Chalamet, Ben Stiller, Jon Stewart, Mariska Hargitay, Tracy Morgan and other celebrities including Knicks superfan Spike Lee joined the party, while Knicks play-by-play announcer Mike Breen emceed the City Hall ceremony.
Alicia Keys, the singer who collaborated with Jay-Z on the 2009 hit ‘Empire State of Mind,’ performed a medley that mixed her song with the classic ‘New York, New York.’
Officials said 10,000 police officers were deployed to secure the event, which followed chaotic celebrations – and some violence – when the Knicks wrapped up glory in a five-game final against San Antonio Spurs.
At one point before the parade, a small group of people were crushed against a barrier near Fulton Street, a key subway hub, pinned between a swelling crowd and a group of police officers shoving the barrier to keep fans penned in.
