Oz

Bernie "The Bruiser" Madoff got into a prison-yard tussle with a fellow inmate over — of all things — the stock market, eyewitnesses told The New York Post.

And, by inmates' accounts, the 71-year-old Ponzi schemer came out the winner.

Madoff, serving 150 years at the Butner, N.C., federal prison, was heard last week getting into a heated debate over the state of the market with another senior-citizen jailbird.

The shouting match got so heated that the inmate pushed Madoff, who shoved back harder with both hands, causing his attacker to stumble.

As the attacker tried to stand up straight, Madoff hovered over him red-faced and glaring, eyewitnesses said. The stunned attacker went chicken and took off — allowing Madoff to collect some "cred" among his fellow prisoners.

Prisoners interviewed by The Post said this was the first known physical altercation at the slammer for Madoff — who paid a consultant for a crash course in prison culture and survival tips before he was locked up.