Robber picks fight with 68-year-old kickboxing champ

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (FOX 5 Atlanta) - A would-be robber in Florida is nursing some bumps and bruises after he picked the wrong man to target for a crime.

The attacked took aim at 68-year-old Steve Shepherd as he was leaving a restaurant in West Palm Beach this week.

He probably though the nearly 70-year-old man would be easy picking.

"He started yelling at me, 'Give me your (explicative) phone," Shepherd said. "So, I started thinking maybe I picked up the wrong phone in the restaurant!"

The robber grabbed a bottle and hit Shepherd over the head while demanding his cell phone.

But Shepherd is not the average 68-year-old.

He's a five-time world kickboxing champion and wasn't about to give up anything.

"They're holding me back and him back and his ribs were exposed," he said. "I hit him in the ribs and I hurt 'em crack and he dropped."

The attacker managed to get away but left empty handed.

And even though Shepherd got a few bumps and bruises himself, he's glad he was able to teach that guy a lesson.

FOX 5 News reporting from Atlanta