NFL star Ray Rice has been dropped by the Baltimore Ravens following the publishing of a video that appears to show Rice punching his then-fiancée in a hotel elevator.

US website TMZ has obtained the video, which dates back to February 15th, purportedly shows the now-married couple getting into an elevator at the Revel Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City.

Palmer appears to approach the Baltimore Ravens running back during the altercation. He strikes her in the face. She is seen falling to the ground seemingly unconscious. Rice, who was given a two-game suspension and fined following the domestic violence case in July, then drags Palmer out of the elevator and tries to sit her upright. A source within the Baltimore Ravens organisation told People magazine that the club had to let Rice go, "there was no other option". "We should have done it when it all came out before, and there's going to be a lot of soul searching as everyone reflects on how we handled this. But when the newest video came out, the decision was unanimous and final. Ray Rice had to go". When his team returned to camp following the incident, Rice said in a news conference that he "made the biggest mistake of my life." This is the first time footage allegedly showing Rice punching Palmer has been released. Previous clips saw him dragging her out of the lift. TMZ said that they altered the footage and that it is "a cleaned up version of the raw surveillance elevator video." According to the New York Daily News, the video is being reviewed by NFL commissioner Roger Goodall who previously admitted he’d gotten the punishment wrong and outlined a tougher policy for the league. In a statement, the NFL said: "We requested from law enforcement any and all information about the incident, including the video from inside the elevator. That video was not made available to us. And no one in our office has seen it until today.”