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UFC fighter beats up mugger in Brazil

This article is more than 12 months old

RIO DE JANEIRO : A mugger who tried to steal a cellphone from a young woman in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, learnt the hard way that mugging a mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter who goes by "The Iron Lady" is not a good idea.

Ms Polyana Viana, an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) strawweight, brought the man down with two punches and a kick and held him in a "rear-naked choke" before making him sit and wait for the police, she told the sports website MMA Junkie.

The incident happened late Saturday as Viana, 27, was waiting for an Uber outside her apartment block. She said the man told her he had a gun but she surmised it probably was not real and in any case "he won't have time to draw it", before she went into action.

After subduing him, she discovered the weapon was in fact a cardboard replica of a pistol.

Ms Viana posted images of the would-be robber, looking dejected and bruised, with blood on his sleeveless shirt and on a hand, as she kept his arm in a "kimura-like position" until the police arrived.

"Since he took the punches quickly, I think he was scared," she told the site.

She added that after the suspect was processed by the police and treated for his injuries, she went home and made dinner.

Her hands hurt a bit the next day, but it was nothing serious and she was otherwise unharmed.

Muggings are a constant risk in Rio and other cities in Brazil. The country's new president, Mr Jair Bolsonaro, was elected on promises to crack down on crime. - AFP

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