I need an honest opinion... Please help?

[VictoriaJ]

My boyfriend and I got into a fight last night during which he told me to shut up, called me a bitch, and made fun of me to his friends (which Im assuming was merely to hurt me since he was well aware I could hear him).
The fight was my fault, and I apologized, but I feel like I have the right to be angry about the way he acted.
He says he was dragged into a fight when he didn't do anything wrong and so I shouldnt be mad that he acted that way. But I think that just because I made a mistake by listening to gossip instead of talking to him first doesnt give him the right to be so mean.

Did he have the right to lash out at me because the fight was my fault?
The fight really was my fault, I accused him of doing something because a friend of mine told me some things. This friend isnt really a reliable source because he likes me, but I let my emotions get ahold of me and just kinda ran with what this guy said my boyfriend was doing.

The thing is, he's not usually like this. It's just when he's around his guy friends that he seems to want to be this big macho guy. I
I guess I should have mentioned that I called him and this all happened over the phone. I didn't know he was with his friends until I heard them talking about me.