61-year-old man fends off bear attack by punching bear in the face

Not many people can say they've punched a bear in the face and lived to tell the tale.

Rick Nelson, a 61-year-old Canadian former featherweight boxer, can.

Nelson was reportedly walking his dog in Sudbury, Ontario, on Sunday when he happened upon a black bear cub, according to CBC News.

A female black bear (right) forages in the forest for food as seen in this 2009 photo. A 61-year-old Canadian man was confronted by a 300-pound mother bear, after he happened upon her cub. A female black bear (right) forages in the forest for food as seen in this 2009 photo. A 61-year-old Canadian man was confronted by a 300-pound mother bear, after he happened upon her cub. Photo: George Rose/Getty Images Photo: George Rose/Getty Images Image 1 of / 4 Caption Close 61-year-old man fends off bear attack by punching bear in the face 1 / 4 Back to Gallery

"I sat down on a log and the bear cub poked its head out of the shrub nearby," Nelson told the news outlet. "It was so close, I could touch it. It let out a yelp, because I scared the heck out of it."

As an apparent former bear hunter, Nelson said he knew the mother bear would not be far behind. Lo and behold, a 300-pound black bear came running through the bush at "full speed," according to Nelson, and stood in front of him on her hind legs.

There was nowhere to go. The two bears were in front of Nelson and his dog, he told Huffington Post Canada, and behind them was a cliff.

Finding no weapons to defend himself with, Nelson decided to take a swing at the bear. He wound up connecting with the bear's teeth, injuring his knuckles.

The bear then swiped back at the boxer, leaving him with gashes to his face and chest.

"I knew it would swing first with its left, but it would really come with its right, because most bears are right-handed," Nelson said to CBC News.

Nelson then decided to take another swing at the bear: He dealt the bear an uppercut that connected with the bear's snout and left her with blood dripping from her nose.

"[The mother bear] turned around and it was snorting blood. It looked at me, and I thought, 'Oh no. Here it comes,' " he said.

"But it just turned back around and walked away like nothing ever happened and followed the cub," Nelson said. "So I really lucked out there."

The bear and her cub decided to retreat back into the woods.

"Once the cub was safe, it was fine. That's all it was there to do, get its cub to safety. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time," he said to Huffington Post Canada.

"He's experienced with bears. He always knew, if it came to it, to hit a bear in the snout," Nelson's wife Sheryl told the Sudbury Star.

The incident has earned Nelson the nickname "Kung Fu Panda" at work.

Despite what happened, Nelson insists that black bears aren't dangerous and have a "bad rap."

"Black bears really aren't dangerous unless you have a cub involved, so sometimes black bears get a really bad rap," Nelson told the CBC. "Probably they're more afraid of you and [me], than we are of them."

"I'm really glad that the bear walked away. And I'm really glad I did, too," he added.

As for his wounds? Nelson decided to be treated at home with some peroxide and antibiotic cream. Like a boss.