What Makes a Liver Shot Punch so effective?

We’ve all been there. You’re watching a fight and someone gets hit in the liver. They drop to the ground and they seem paralyzed and the fight is over. Sometimes, people watching this won’t even understand what has gone on. But, as people who have been hit in the liver will attest, it’s an awful feeling and goes beyond the realms of pain. When the liver is hit, your body literally shuts down. Whether you like it or not. So, what makes a liver shot so effective?

How the liver shot works in terms of science

From a scientific perspective, the liver shot will shut down your body and it’s not about being tough or mentally strong. Even the toughest men will get dropped by a liver shot such as UFC Champion Brock Lesnar. The reason for this is that all organs are coated in a fiber that doesn’t like to get disturbed. The good news is for most organs is that they’re protected by bones. For instance, the brain is incredibly fragile but is literally protected by your skull. Similarly, your kidneys have the same fragile membrane but are protected by your ribs.

Unfortunately for the liver, it is a huge organ and so it is also easily exposed which is not good. The outcome of this is that it is not protected compared to other organs. The result is it can get disturbed far easier compared to the other major organs and the outcome isn’t good.

So, let’s say you get hit in the liver. Its membrane is disturbed and if hit with enough force, your body will shut down as a result. Here, your brain will feel something isn’t right with your body and will shut down because of this. In this sense, the liver isn’t magically weaker compared to other organs, it just happens to have no real defense which is why it’s prone to attack.

Can you avoid dropping from a liver shot?

As mentioned earlier, this is literally impossible if hit hard enough and isn’t about pain. It’s like getting hit in the head – at some point, you will drop. The difference is, if you get knocked out by a punch to the head, you won’t feel it until you wake up. The liver shot, will drop you to the floor and be incredibly painful too for a minute or so. This is because your brain is still functioning normally. According to many fighters, the liver shot is literally the most painful blow you can take

In brief, the liver shot is a combination of pain and paralysis. Your legs will give way even if you don’t want them too and physically, your body won’t be able to function like it normally would. The reason why people wouldn’t fall to a liver shot is that the blow doesn’t connect properly, and is nothing to do with their mentality.

Therefore, the only way to avoid getting struck down by a liver shot is by defending the area correctly or pot luck of where the strike lands. The issue with this is that defending the liver will often result in your head becoming more exposed if you over compensate. Luckily for most, the liver can be a tricky place to land – which means they’re relatively uncommon as a result.

Examples of famous liver shots in fighting

Perhaps the most common example being a liver shot specialist was Bas Rutten. The Dutch MMA legend was originally from a kickboxing background, so he knew his stuff when it came to precise striking. Under many of his fights in Shooto, he wasn’t allowed to punch with a closed fist which made head knockouts more difficult. This lead to him targeting the liver as an efficient way to knockout opponents within the Shooto ruleset.

In one particular fight, Bas Rutten beat Jason Delucia by liver shot. Here, he punched the liver and actually ruptured it due to the power of his punch. Because of this, even years later – Bas Rutten is known as the greatest liver shot striker ever. If you want to learn about landing liver shots, then his material is a good place to start.

Liver shots aren’t just done by punches either. Then can also be done by hitting the liver in whatever way works. This means kicks, knees and even elbows can drop the opponent. The result is that the liver shot is mostly seen in boxing, Muay Thai and MMA. Usually though, they are done when someone lands a punch or kick though which is the easiest way to strike the target.

How do you throw a liver shot punch in a fight?

This is a good question for any prospective MMA fighter and is an effective way to win a fight. The first thing to do is to locate exactly where the liver is. The liver sits on the right side of the body and sits just below the ribs meaning that this is the spot you should be aiming for. Once you’ve realised this, you can drill hitting this target and begin being wary of where it is.

The liver shot is arguably beneficial for left handed fighters, as it means they can strike the right side of their opponent naturally when face on. Anyway, most liver shots are done by setting up some kind of fake or counter. An example of this, could be using your right hand to pretend to attack the head, when the opponent naturally raises their hands to defend the head, you can counter with a left hook to the liver which is now undefended.

Similarly, you can aim a side kick or spinning kick towards the liver. Just remember, don’t be too obvious and keep your defense in mind at the same time. The sign of a good fighter is someone who can set up moves without them looking too scripted and blatant. Overall though, it’s always good to have a liver punch or kick in your locker as many won’t expect it.

Can you die from a liver shot?

The answer to this is yes, but it’s not an easy task. Basically, if the liver is damaged enough by the force of the punch or kick, then it could shut down completely. The liver is needed in humans and is an essential organ as it filters your body of the bad stuff. In short, it’s kind of like removing a bin from a household, eventually it would be ruined by rubbish.

Therefore, if the force was hard enough then yes you could die from a liver shot. Thankfully though, this is incredibly rare and almost unheard of. Actually, you’re far more likely to die from getting hit to the head. Even though a liver shot is incredibly painful, a headshot is more likely to cause brain damage and therefore lead to death.

What does a liver shot feel like?

As has been touched upon, the liver shot can be incredibly painful and your body begins to temporarily shut down. The issue with this is that your brain is still wide awake, so you can feel everything. Many describe a liver shot as an instant feeling of loss of breath and also feeling like they’re going to die which is related. As well, many have gone on to describe a liver shot as the worse paint they’ve ever felt.

In short, as you can imagine – a liver shot is not a nice feeling and feels like hell. The good news is that it’s not a long-term issue and if it’s not ruptured will not cause long-term side effects which is a nicer outcome when compared to concussions that can be caused by blows to the head.

Why are liver shots legal?

The reason for the legality of liver shots in combat sports is because they’re very rarely fatal and as stated, don’t come with issues such as concussions and future CTE. As a result, there’s no reason for making liver shots illegal. In fact, in practically all combat sports, the liver shot is legal. Further, due to its relative uncommonness, liver shots don’t happen too often anyway making them a bit of a non-issue where legality is concerned.

Conclusion

If you’re serious about fighting, then the liver shot is something worth studying and practicing. This is relevant from both an offensive and defensive perspective. Basically, it will only advantage you if you learn how to strike the liver, and similarly it won’t hurt to learn how to defend against liver shorts. For the most part though, they can be difficult to land and fight the sweet spot, which is why they’re not focused on as much as strikes to the head.

So, to summarize – liver shots are worth learning. However, they are fairly niche and many people see striking the head as a more efficient way of fighting. Having said this, the success of Bas Rutten is proof that under the right circumstances and training, they can become a brutal tool when fighting.

For more information on the subject, check out Bas Rutten’s Big DVDs of Combat that goes over the liver shot in great detail.