Bas Rutten reacts to Nieky Holzken’s dynamite liver shot highlight

Dutch kickboxing star Nieky Holzken has impressed his fellow countryman and striking legend Bas Rutten.

Rutten, a king of liver strikes, loved the body punches he saw from Holzken in a recent video posted on Instagram by ONE Championship. The promotion shared:

"Will we see 'The Natural’s' left hook to the body against Islam Murtazaev on October 21 at ONE 162?"

The clip shows 'The Natural' Nieky Holzken landing a thunderous body punch to his opponent's liver, sending him to the ground in pain. The video got the attention of MMA star Bas Rutten.

The former UFC heavyweight champion and King of Pancrase is a massive fan of liver strikes, as he exclaimed in the comment section of ONE's post:

"He’s the real livershot guy! Love that, was actually [just teaching] that last weekend, right uppercut (defense closes so [liver] is exposed) livershot."

Bas Rutten is a certified MMA legend with a Hall of Fame nod. He made his debut in the very first Pancrase event in 1993 before the UFC even existed. Pancrase is a mix of professional wrestling and catch wrestling.

Rutten also commentated for PRIDE during the combat sports boom in Japan in the early 2000s.

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Nieky Holzken's fight at ONE 162

Nieky Holzken is a kickboxing legend, having held multiple world titles in GLORY Kickboxing during his storied career.

'The Natural' has also fought for world titles in ONE Championship but has been unsuccessful in his attempts against illustrious world champion Regian Eersel.

The 38-year-old athlete will look to get back in the win column after his most recent knockout loss when he faces Islam Murtazaev. The pair are set to collide on October 21 at ONE 162.

Murtazaev has had one fight in ONE Championship, which he lost to reigning world champion Eersel. At ONE 162, Murtazaev and Holzken will go to war to prove their position as top-ranked fighters.

Nieky Holzken is a seasoned veteran with over 100 kickboxing fights to his name. He will have an experience advantage in this bout due to having made his professional debut 20 years ago.

The Dutchman also has notable boxing experience. including a lone loss to Callum Smith. Smith went on to fight Canelo Alvarez for the WBA and The Ring super-middleweight titles.

Looking ahead to his next outing on Instagram, the Dutch kickboxer said:

"Excited to get back in the cage 21 [October] against @islam_murtazaev [who] will face an improved me #ONE162."