Kimmel: Leno's the Sucker-Puncher, Not Me

Jimmy Kimmel says there's no way he "sucker-punched" Jay Leno, despite what Leno told Oprah Winfrey.

Leno on Oprah: "I was devastated" to lose The Tonight Show

In an interview with Winfrey on Thursday, Leno said he felt "sucker-punched" when Kimmel appeared during The Jay Leno Show's "10@10" segment to deride Leno for returning to NBC's 11:35 slot, replacing Conan O'Brien.

During his Jimmy Kimmel Live! monologue a few hours after the Winfrey interview aired, Kimmel told viewers "what really happened." He said Leno's producer wanted him to answer questions like, "What's your junk food weakness?" but he opted instead to question Leno, on his own show, about his motives for replacing O'Brien in the slot.

"I figured I'd start in, he'd get into it and we'd mix it up," Kimmel said in the monologue. "You know, at one time [Leno] was a comedian."
Leno barely reacted during the 10@10 segment as Kimmel assailed him, again and again. When Leno asked Kimmel to name the best prank he had ever pulled, Kimmel answered: "I told a guy that five years from now, 'I'm going to give you my show.' And then when the five years came I gave it to him and took it back almost instantly." Leno laughed it off and moved on to the next question, asking Kimmel if he ever ordered anything off television. "Like NBC ordered your show off the TV?" Kimmel replied.

Ratings: 10.3 million tune in for O'Brien's final Tonight Show

Kimmel said the real sucker-punch was Leno complaining to Oprah on her show.

"He's a tattle-tale. Oprah and I had a wonderful relationship, and now it's ruined because of Jay," Kimmel said. "By the way, watch, out Oprah. Don't think he won't take your show next."

Click here to watch Kimmel's monologue.