Kell Brook has denied there were any racial connotations behind a recent jibe aimed at rival Amir Khan in advance of their long-awaited grudge match this weekend.
The two rivals are finally poised to settle their feud at the AO Arena in Manchester on Saturday night in a fight that is almost 20 years in the making.
Thursday's final press conference ahead of the all-British showdown was an ugly escalation as both fighters continued to exchange offensive barbs and insults.
Khan accused Brook of making a racial slur in reference to a previous comment made by the former IBF world welterweight champion that his rival had a "poppadom chin".
Khan made the initial accusation at the press conference and afterwards told the Press Association (PA): "It's so sad that that he had to come out with a comment like that. I respected him as a fighter, don't get me wrong. It gives me an added push to stick it on him and give him a proper beating.
"At the end of the day we're fighting each other but you still have some sort of respect for him - I think that's gone out the window now. I thought maybe after the fight we could be friends, I don't want to be his friend.
"People look up to Kell Brook, he's on the biggest stage of his career. The reason we have to talk about this and get it out there is so people realise giving racial (abuse) should not happen and we are totally against it.
"Everyone needs to be on that and say 'it shouldn't happen'. People shouldn't be racist especially in this day and age, come on. We're in the 21st Century and we shouldn't hear anything racial now. But it is still out there."
Also speaking to PA in the aftermath of the press conference, Brook insisted that the remark had no racial connotations and had merely been made to highlight his belief that Khan had little punch resistance.
"What (Khan) is trying to do is get everyone on his side and think I'm some kind of racist character when I'm not. There's no way I'm racist at all," he said.
"He's trying to put me under the bus by getting people up turn on me. I just meant by what I said is how delicate he is, poppadoms just break, which is the same as his chin.
"That's the only angle I'm coming from. There's no racial angle there at all, zero."
Khan and Brook were also strongly criticised for using homophobic language during Thursday’s press conference after Brook spoke of the duo sharing a room while competing on the same England team as amateurs many years ago.
"That doesn't sound right... don't laugh,” Khan said. “Listen, I haven't shared a room with you, don't be saying that. That doesn't sound right, Kell, especially with the stuff I've heard."
Brook then responded: "It's you who was on gay sites w*****g yourself off."
Sky Sports apologised for the behaviour of the respective fighters, with their head of boxing development Adam Smith - who hosted the press conference - describing it as “unsavoury, very unprofessional and just wrong”.
Smith confirmed that British Boxing Board of Control (BBBoC) chief Robert Smith will speak to both camps, while promoter and BOXXER CEO Ben Shalom also criticised the duo and is said to have reminded them of their responsibilities.
