Shayne Ward: 'I Knew I Would Lose Skate-Off'

Dancing On Icereject Shayne Wardhas claimed that he knew he would be leaving the show when he found himself in the skate-off against EastEnders actor Matt Lapinskas.

The 28-year-old former winner of The X Factor - who appears naked on the cover of the current edition of Attitude magazine - has spoken out after accusations from fans that the show was fixed.

Many viewers thought Matt should have gone instead because he made a mistake in the skate-off, but three of the judges still picked him as the winner.

He told The Sun: "I knew I was going regardless. I knew I was going to come second to Matt.

"I said I was gutted and I tried to hold it, Matt was crying and I gave him a hug and he kept apologising but I said, 'You have nothing to apologise for'."

And Shayne asked his fans not to blame Matt for his exit.

"I completely understand that but I can't make up the judges' minds. Jason voted for me and he said a 'save me' skate needs to be perfect.

"Yeah I think so but it's their decision and I couldn't have swayed them."

He returned to his Twitter account this morning, writing: "Good morning everyone. I was finally able to sleep last night. What happened on sunday totally drained me . How are you all? X"

Meanwhile Jason Gardiner - the one judge who voted for Shayne to stay in the contest - backed him up in comments to The Mirror.

Referring to Pamela Anderson's shock exit in week one after making a mistake in her skate-off routine, he said: "In the skate-off mistakes should count. We got rid of Pammy and it should be no different. Stick to the rules."

SEE PICTURES OF THE DANCING ON ICE LINE-UP HERE!