Liver Punch

In my humble opinion, one most under-appreciated strikes is one to the liver aka the liver punch, liver shot. Liver punches will absolutely bring down an opponent and, if hard enough, can even cause them to lose consciousness. Granted, a hard blow to just about any organ can do that. The sudden trauma to the body causes a cascade of bad events effecting heart rate and blood vessel dilation.

The liver, however, is especially vulnerable. It’s the largest internal organ, about 3 pounds, sits in the abdomen, facing an opponent, and is slightly exposed under the ribs. Strangely, it takes a second or two, but when the liver is struck hard enough the body WILL go down and not simply from the debilitating pain. It simply can’t help itself. Here’s why:

The reason for the (body) collapse is, when your blood pressure’s going down, your body tries to instinctively control the blood pressure, and if it can’t raise the heart rate or restrict the blood vessels, it puts the body in a supine position so that it can maintain some blood flow to the brain. Because if you lose blood pressure to the brain, obviously it’s not compatible with life.
– http://fightland.vice.com/blog/fight-doctor—the-liver-kick

If you have a great disparity in size between characters, a blow to the right side of the abdomen – liver punch – will bring the larger opponent down 100% of the time. However, be certain the severity of the strike matches the size of the opponent. Larger bodies have more muscle and fat. You have to be certain you account for the greater mass. Also, if you make that larger fighter a lefty the scenario will be more plausible as a fighter who engages with his right shoulder forward puts the liver front and center. (Remember, the power hand is always back.)

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