11:44 AM PT -- The Michael Jackson impersonator who took down a guy trying to fight him is speaking up about what exactly led up to this confrontation ... and it sounds like it was a random attack from somebody who wasn't well, so says MJ himself.
We talked to performer Santana Jackson on "TMZ Live" to get the blow-by-blow ... and he truly makes it seem like this came out of nowhere, unprovoked. Watch how he explains the story ... SJ claims the man in green straight-up hit him for no reason, which set things off.
As Santana mentions to us here, he's been training in pro wrestling for a while now -- he's on the independent circuit -- so he knew how to subdue the guy, noting he didn't wanna hurt him more than he had to. Eventually, the cops showed ... and Santana says they, too, got a taste of the action.
As you can see, Santana uses his MJ skills to the max while inside the square circle. The Fremont Street perp was apparently hauled off to jail ... while Santana carried on with his act. What a pro!
A Michael Jackson impersonator got the best of a dude on the mean streets of Las Vegas, and ... well, it's hilarious!
WELCOME TO FREEMONT STREET !! 😳hee hee @FOX5Vegas @LasVegasLocally @lasvegas @WWEUniverse @ufc @michaeljackson pic.twitter.com/fAvVn4QdXr
— Marcus deegan👊🏼 (@DeeganMarcus) January 15, 2022
There's not a whole lot of info on what's behind the fight, but it went down on Fremont Street.
The fight looks almost slapstick ... MJ and the dude squaring off with fists raised, and then they tangle.
Michael's ground game is far superior to the guy in green, and he eventually gets the guy in a headlock and begins to squeeze. At a point, it's not funny anymore, and it looks like the guy might lose consciousness. Some passersby disentangle the 2 and no one seems worse for wear.
We don't know what started the fight, but the shirt on the guy in green reads, "CAN'T FIX STUPID."
It's the most entertaining lookalike fight since SpongeBob squared off with 2 women.
Originally Published -- 7:24 AM PT