Liver shot
Encyclopedia
A liver shot is a punch
, kick
, or knee strike
to the right side of the rib
cage that damages the liver
. Blunt force to the liver can be excruciatingly painful, and an especially effective shot will incapacitate a person. Thus, in combat sport
, liver shots have produced technical knockout
s (TKOs).
Bas Rutten
popularized both the term "liver shot" and the use of this tactic in mixed martial arts
.
Punch (strike)
A punch is a striking blow with the fist. It is the most commonly used attack in hand to hand combat. It is used in some martial arts and combat sports, most notably boxing where it is the only type of technique allowed...
, kick
Kick
In combat sports and hand-to-hand combat, a kick is a physical strike using the foot, leg, or knee . This type of attack is used frequently, especially in stand-up fighting...
, or knee strike
Knee (strike)
A knee strike is a strike with the knee, either with the kneecap or the surrounding area. Kneeing is a disallowed practice in many combat sports, especially to the head of a downed opponent...
to the right side of the rib
Rib
In vertebrate anatomy, ribs are the long curved bones which form the rib cage. In most vertebrates, ribs surround the chest, enabling the lungs to expand and thus facilitate breathing by expanding the chest cavity. They serve to protect the lungs, heart, and other internal organs of the thorax...
cage that damages the liver
Liver
The liver is a vital organ present in vertebrates and some other animals. It has a wide range of functions, including detoxification, protein synthesis, and production of biochemicals necessary for digestion...
. Blunt force to the liver can be excruciatingly painful, and an especially effective shot will incapacitate a person. Thus, in combat sport
Combat sport
A Combat sport, also known as a Fighting sport, is a competitive contact sport where two combatants fight against each other using certain rules of engagement , typically with the aim of simulating parts of real hand to hand combat...
, liver shots have produced technical knockout
Knockout
A knockout is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, Karate and others sports involving striking...
s (TKOs).
Bas Rutten
Bas Rutten
Sebastiaan "Bas" Rutten is a retired Dutch mixed martial artist, Karate and Taekwondo blackbelt, and kickboxer. He was a UFC Heavyweight Champion, a three time King of Pancrase world champion, and finished his career on a 22 fight unbeaten streak...
popularized both the term "liver shot" and the use of this tactic in mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts
Mixed Martial Arts is a full contact combat sport that allows the use of both striking and grappling techniques, both standing and on the ground, including boxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, muay Thai, kickboxing, karate, judo and other styles. The roots of modern mixed martial arts can be...
.
Examples
Notable examples of liver shots in combat sport include:- Ricky HattonRicky HattonRichard John Hatton MBE, more commonly known as Ricky "the Hitman" Hatton, , is a former British professional boxer, and currently a promoter....
knocked out Jose Luis CastilloJosé Luis CastilloJosé Luis Castillo is a Mexican boxer. Nicknamed El Temible, Castillo is considered one the best lightweights of his era. He is the former The Ring and two-time WBC Lightweight champion....
with a huge liver shot. - Bas RuttenBas RuttenSebastiaan "Bas" Rutten is a retired Dutch mixed martial artist, Karate and Taekwondo blackbelt, and kickboxer. He was a UFC Heavyweight Champion, a three time King of Pancrase world champion, and finished his career on a 22 fight unbeaten streak...
repeatedly knocked down Jason DeLuciaJason DeLuciaJason DeLucia is a retired American mixed martial artist. . He holds victories over Masakatsu Funaki, Matt Hume, Minoru Suzuki, Yuki Kondo, Ikuhisa Minowa, Kiuma Kunioku, Chris Lytle, and Manabu Yamada...
with liver punches during their 1996 PancrasePancrasePancrase is a mixed martial arts promotion company founded in Japan in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. Pancrase is taken from Pankration, a sport in the ancient Olympic games. Suzuki and Funaki are particularly skilled in the art of catch wrestling and based the...
fight, rupturing DeLucia's liver and earning a TKO victory. - Ernesto HoostErnesto HoostErnesto Fritz "Mr. Perfect" Hoost is a Dutch former kickboxer and four-time K-1 World Champion. He made his debut in 1993 at the K-1 World Grand Prix 1993, where he came just one win short of the world title...
hit Mirko CroCopMirko FilipovicMirko Filipović is a former Croatian heavyweight kickboxer, mixed martial artist, politician, and law enforcement officer. Filipović was a member of the Croatian Parliament from 2003 through 2007...
with a left hook to the liver that ended one of their bouts during a K-1 competition. The end result could have also been attributed to a rib injury Mirko sustained in a previous match that night. - Bas RuttenBas RuttenSebastiaan "Bas" Rutten is a retired Dutch mixed martial artist, Karate and Taekwondo blackbelt, and kickboxer. He was a UFC Heavyweight Champion, a three time King of Pancrase world champion, and finished his career on a 22 fight unbeaten streak...
knocked out Minoru SuzukiMinoru Suzukiis a Japanese professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. Suzuki was the co-founder of Pancrase, one of the first mixed martial arts organizations in the world. During the 1990s he was known as one of the best fighters in the Pancrase promotion and was the second King of Pancrase world champion...
with a knee to the liver during a PancrasePancrasePancrase is a mixed martial arts promotion company founded in Japan in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. Pancrase is taken from Pankration, a sport in the ancient Olympic games. Suzuki and Funaki are particularly skilled in the art of catch wrestling and based the...
fight in 1994. - Akihiro GonoAkihiro Gonois a Japanese mixed martial artist who currently fights as a welterweight. He is best known for his clever and deceptive fighting style, and for his flashy ring entrances. His fighting style is characterized by skillfully avoiding strikes, using fast counter punches and generally getting the...
incapacitated Ivan SalaverryIvan SalaverryIvan E. Salaverry is a Canadian mixed martial arts fighter and instructor. He is a member of Tito Ortiz's Team Punishment, and is known for his well-rounded skills. Salaverry is a middleweight veteran of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, BAMMA and the now-defunct World Fighting Alliance...
with a spinning back kick to the liver in their 2001 ShootoShootoShooto is a mixed martial arts organization that is governed by the Shooto Association and the International Shooto Commission. Shooto was originally formed in 1985, as an organization and as a particular fighting system derived from shoot wrestling. Practitioners are referred to as shooters,...
fight. - Mirko CroCopMirko FilipovicMirko Filipović is a former Croatian heavyweight kickboxer, mixed martial artist, politician, and law enforcement officer. Filipović was a member of the Croatian Parliament from 2003 through 2007...
earned three TKO victories after severely injuring opponents with liver shots in PRIDE fights: Heath HerringHeath HerringHeath Herring is an inactive American Heavyweight professional mixed martial artist who attained popularity fighting for PRIDE FC in Japan and most recently fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship...
with a kick in 2003, Ibragim MagomedovIbragim MagomedovIbragim Magomedov is a Russian mixed martial artist, whose height is and weight is 112.7 kg .Born in Makhachkala, Dagestan on June 8, 1972, Magomedov made his MMA debut in 2000 at Samurai 2000 Tournament where he defeated the Japanese fighter Ryushi Yanagisawa.After being discovered by Satoru...
with a kick in 2005, and Josh BarnettJosh BarnettJoshua Lawrence Barnett is an American mixed martial artist and professional wrestler who currently fights in the heavyweight division of Strikeforce. Barnett has been an accomplished fighter in mixed martial arts, winning the UFC Heavyweight Championship and the King of Pancrase Openweight...
with punches in the 2006 Open-Weight Grand Prix championship fight. - David LoiseauDavid LoiseauDavid Loiseau is a Canadian mixed martial artist from Montreal, Quebec. He has fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, EliteXC, and TKO Major League MMA and is the former TKO Middleweight Champion. He was the first French Canadian to fight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship...
incapacitated Charles McCarthy with a spinning back kick to the liver in their 2005 UFCUltimate Fighting ChampionshipThe Ultimate Fighting Championship is the largest mixed martial arts promotion company in the world that hosts most of the top-ranked fighters in the sport...
fight. - Pete SellPete SellPeter K. Sell, is an American mixed martial artist specializing in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He is a black belt under teacher and fellow mixed martial artist Matt Serra in East Meadow, New York, and has trained extensively under striking coach Ray Longo in Garden City, New York...
punched Scott SmithScott Smith (fighter)Bryan Scott Smith, , is an American mixed martial artist previously fighting at middleweight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship making his debut at UFC 59. He also fought for EliteXC before it folded and currently fights for Strikeforce...
in the liver during their 2006 UFC fight, causing Smith to stumble backwards and double over in pain. Sell then moved forward to finish him, but Smith threw a desperation haymakerHaymakerHaymaker may refer to:* A type of punch, a wild swing with all of a person's might to knock out the opponent* Conditioner , a type of farm machine that treats hay to cause more rapid and even drying...
that caught Sell and knocked him out. Smith then collapsed to the ground in pain and later struggled to stay upright during the victory announcement. - Cung LeCung LeCung Le is a Vietnamese-American Sanshou kickboxer, mixed martial artist, and actor from Saigon, Vietnam currently competing in the UFC. He is the former IKF Light Heavyweight San Shou World Champion and has a professional San Shou record of 16-0 before moving to mixed martial arts...
dropped Sammy MorganSammy Morgan (fighter)Sam "The Squeeze" Morgan is an American mixed martial artist who competes as a Welterweight. He was a contestant on The Ultimate Fighter 2 and also fought in the Strikeforce and EliteXC promotions.-Mixed martial arts record:...
with a liver kick in their 2007 StrikeforceStrikeforceStrikeforce is a U.S.-based mixed martial arts and kickboxing organization based in San Jose, California. It is headed by CEO Scott Coker and owned by Zuffa, LLC...
fight, resulting in a TKO. - Lyoto MachidaLyoto MachidaLyoto Carvalho Machida is a Japanese-Brazilian mixed martial artist from Belém, Brazil who fights as a light heavyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship...
kneed Tito OrtizTito OrtizJacob Christopher "Tito" Ortiz is a Mexican-American mixed martial artist and former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, having held the title from April 14, 2000 to September 26, 2003. Along with fighters like Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell, he was one of the sport's early stars...
in the liver during their 2008 UFC fight. Ortiz collapsed in obvious pain, and Machida went on to win a unanimous decisionUnanimous decisionA unanimous decision is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and others sports involving striking in which all three judges agree on which fighter won the match....
. - Rich FranklinRich FranklinRich Jay Franklin II is an American mixed martial artist and former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight champion.-Background:...
caused Matt HamillMatt HamillMatthew S. Hamill is a retired American wrestler and mixed martial artist. He is a three-time NCAA Division III National Champion in wrestling while attending the Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, New York...
to collapse by kicking him in the liver, resulting in a victory by TKO during their September 9, 2008 bout at UFC 88UFC 88UFC 88: Breakthrough was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on September 6, 2008 at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. The event was headlined by a light heavyweight bout between Chuck Liddell and Rashad Evans....
. - Antonio MargaritoAntonio MargaritoAntonio Margarito Montiel is a Mexican professional boxer. He is a former WBA, WBO, & IBF welterweight champion...
left hooked Kermit CintronKermit CintronKermit Cintrón is a Puerto Rican boxer who is from Carolina, Puerto Rico. Cintrón is trained by Ronnie Shields and managed by Josh Dubin. He is promoted by Top Rank.-Early and personal life:...
in the liver during their April 12, 2008 fight. Cintron collapsed thus ending the fight with Cintron thrashing on the floor. - Bernard HopkinsBernard HopkinsBernard Hopkins Jr, known as The Executioner is an American boxer and the current Ring Magazine and WBC light heavyweight champion...
left hooked Oscar De La HoyaOscar de la HoyaOscar De La Hoya is a retired American boxer of Mexican descent. Nicknamed "The Golden Boy", De La Hoya won a gold medal at the Barcelona Olympic Games shortly after graduating from Garfield High School. De La Hoya comes from a boxing family. His grandfather Vicente, father Joel Sr., and brother...
on the liver on their September 18, 2004 bout in the middleweight division. Oscar collapsed thus ending the fight with Oscar thrashing on the floor in pain in a 9th round knock out. - Sam StoutSam StoutSamuel James "Hands of Stone" Stout is a Canadian mixed martial artist from London, Ontario. Currently signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship, he is primarily known as a striker with an iron chin.- Mixed martial arts career :...
hit Matt WimanMatt WimanMatthew Charles Wiman is an American mixed martial artist, who competes as a lightweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship...
with a brutal liver shot during their April 18, 2009 bout at UFC 97 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. - Nam PhanNam PhanNam Phan is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the featherweight and lightweight divisions. He was a competitor on The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck...
landed a liver shot on fellow TUF 12 Fighter Cody MckenzieCody McKenzieCody McKenzie is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the lightweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 2007, McKenzie mostly competed in his regional circuit, before signing with the Ultimate Fighting Championship to appear on The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs...
During a bout.The punch dropped Mckenzie and the referee was forced to stop the fight.