JOIN USAlexander Lebedev, a former KGB operative and owner of two major newspapers in Britain, wrote on his blog that property developer Sergei Polonsky had earned the clobbering by behaving abusively throughout the recording of the program.
In a preview clip posted on the NTV channel's website before the show airing today evening, Polonsky is seen saying that he sometimes felt like "bashing (Lebedev) in the face," prompting the newspaper owner to jump to his feet.
After sitting back down, Lebedev then swiftly delivered a sucker punch, sending Polonsky tumbling to the ground.
The clip then shows Lebedev squaring up to a stunned Polonsky as the presenter puts himself between the two men.
Writing on his blog, Lebedev displayed no sign of contrition.
"Unfortunately, NTV viewers cannot see how Polonsky behaved during the one-and-a-half hour recording. Everybody could see that he was absolutely off his head," Lebedev wrote.
After the recording, Polonsky complained he had sustained a hand injury and that his jeans were ripped. That drew only mocking incredulity from Lebedev.
"Now, he's showing his ripped pants, and it is hard to say anything about that. He was hit in the face and he's showing off a hole in the backside of his trousers. Strange," Lebedev wrote.