Chris Brown talks about the night he assaulted Rihanna in new documentary

'I look back at that picture and I'm like: 'That's not me, bro. I hate it to this day. That's going to haunt me forever'

Picture: (Tim P. Whitby/ Frederick M. Brown / Getty Images)

Chris Brown has spoken about the night he assaulted his ex-girlfriend Rihanna in a car after a party in 2009.

In a new documentary, he said that they had been having a violent argument about another woman when he had "really hit her" and bit her arm.

Rihanna was pictured with a split lip and bruises after the incident. Brown received five years probation and a community service order for the assault.

Chris Brown with his attorney Mark Geragos at the May 9 court hearing

In the documentary, called Chris Brown: Welcome to my Life, he said that the relationship had suffered after he admitted being unfaithful with a former employee, the BBC reports.

After he told Rihanna about his infidelity, he said that she "hated" him and their relationship became increasingly volatile.

"She didn't care, she just didn't trust me after that," he said. "From there, it just went downhill because it would be fights, it would be verbal fights, physical fights as well...

"We were fighting each other. She would hit me, I would hit her. But it was never OK."

Rihanna spotted the woman Brown had an affair with at a party, then found a message from her on Brown's phone, which he says led to the argument in the car.

"I remember she was trying to kick me. It was just her being upset. But then I really hit her. With a closed fist, like I punched her and it busted her lip. And when I saw it I was in shock. Why the hell did I hit her?

"From there, she just spit in my face, spit blood in my face, so it enraged me even more. It was a real fight in a car."

Brown says he pulled over and Rihanna drove home on her own. Of the leaked police picture that showed her injuries, Brown said: "I look back at that picture and I'm like: 'That's not me, bro. I hate it to this day. That's going to haunt me forever."

The National Domestic Violence helpline can be reached free in the UK on 0808 2000 247.