By EZRA HOLT

A passenger violently attacked a driver at the Caulfield Train Station taxi rank around 9:30 this morning. 

The taxi’s passenger, believed to be named Michael, head-butted, bit and punched the driver before he retaliated and pinned his attacker to the ground.

The taxi driver, who did not want to be named, said Michael already had blood on his face when he entered the cab and demanded to pay the fare upon arrival at his destination in Boronia.

The driver said Michael became aggressive and threatened him when he refused to drive him there. 

“I said ‘mate, get out’, he said ‘no I’m going to break your door – then I’m going to kill you’," he said. 

“He got out and hit me on the head, so I grabbed him by the throat and that’s when it started”.

A bystander, who also asked not to be named, witnessed the fight and attempted to break it up. 

“I jumped off the train and those two guys were wrestling at the back of the taxi," he said. 

“They started swinging punches. It looked like it was going to turn nasty and escalate because they were punching each other and biting each other and scratching.

“I was trying to stop them from punching each other in the face…it got to the point when they weren’t listening to me anymore.

“The guy on the bottom got aggressive again and the taxi driver punched him a couple of times and he started bleeding from the mouth. It was quite ugly.”

The witness said the men “stayed in a stalemate for a few minutes”, before onlookers separated them.

Both Monash Security guards and Victoria Police officers were called to stop the fight.