Another Monday Morning

You ask to be a lion tamer. The ringmaster ask when you will be able to start, you tell him right away. With that he leads you into the massive tent, hands you a hat, a whip and a chair and wishes you luck and leaves. Suddenly you notice a large lion approaching you. There is a large crowd cheering. From the blood all over the ground and around the lions mouth you assume that the last lion tamer wasn't terribly good at his job. The lion still looks hungry. What do you do?