Two Guys Tried to Mug This MMA Star in New York. Listen to His Story and You'll Learn Why He 'Raccooned' Them -- and Why He Says It Was the Right Thing to Do.

Call him a Brazilian Batman.

In a video posted to YouTube this week, Brazilian mixed martial artist Renzo Gracie shared the story of the time two guys tried to mug him in New York City — and how he handled the situation.

The Brazilian jiujitsu master said he was walking several blocks late at night when a pair of guys started pestering him for a cigarette, and when he said he didn't smoke, they closed in on him.

He was expecting them to have a knife or gun, Gracie said, but when he realized his muggers were unarmed, Gracie unloaded a vicious beatdown on them.

One of the muggers got away, so Gracie followed the first guy around town until the muggers got back together — at which point Gracie struck again, choking out and "raccooning" the second mugger.

Gracie, who is a skilled fighter but a pretty small guy, said there was a simple and justifiable reason for why he injured the muggers so badly: They needed to be taught a lesson so they wouldn't mug again.

Gracie said:

These people, you have to understand, they are the guys who are outside stealing from women, who are stealing from old people. They prey on them. So if you have an opportunity to put a beating on them, it has to be well done.

Watch Gracie tell the whole story below (content warning: frank discussion of graphic violence):

On Reddit on Thursday, multiple commenters praised Gracie's story.

"I don't know who this guy is, but that's one of the greatest stories I've ever heard," one wrote. "Straight up vigilante Batman s**t."

"What a legend," another commented. "I wish this kind of s**t happened more often where the bad guys get their a**es handed to them."

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