I realise that in the moment it could have been quite scary, but it is clear the lion isn't really attacking, but is just testing for dominance by gently fighting. It may have eventually escalated as the lion wasn't happy about submitting to this new human, who is clearly below the pecking order to the lion. Don't take this as a "yeah, I could do that" comment, as I'd probably be far more likely to be mauled while naively trying to assert my dominance .