“I knew if I hit him one time, it would be over” – Nieky Holzken says Yoshihiro Akiyama KO went as planned

Nieky Holzken’s well-educated hands were always going to be a problem for Yoshihiro ‘Sexyama’ Akiyama in their first-of-its-kind contest, and it did just that when ONE 165 got underway last Sunday, January 28.

Both martial arts icons accepted this unique special-rules contest at the start of the year, with the scheduled nine-minute duel switching from boxing, Muay Thai, and MMA from round one to round three, respectively.

And while the watching world and the sold-out audience inside the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, would have wanted this barnburner duel to last a bit longer, Nieky Holzken’s crisp boxing and fight IQ had other plans.

Speaking to Sportskeeeda MMA after the win, Nieky Holzken said:

“It's not that I'm feeling bad for him, but I know he's feeling not great after a knockout loss. It's not nice to feel that way, and I wish him all the best. But he accepted the fight. I accepted the fight. I accepted on 85 kg. Normally, I fight 77, so I did it for him.”

He added:

“I accepted small gloves also for him. I’ve only fought one time with John Wayne Parr with the small gloves, so yeah. But my advantage was the first one boxing, yeah. I’m a boxer, so I knew if I hit him one time, it would be over.”

The 40-year-old Dutch legend stepped on the pedal and went at ‘Sexyama’ with relentless pressure. And in a matter of seconds, he connected with a thumping left hook that left his foe on wobbly legs.

From there, the end was inevitable. Just as soon as the Japanese-South Korean star regained footing, ‘The Natural’ came knocking at his foe’s door with a shot to the midsection and a right hand that secured him the highlight-reel finish at 1:40 of the fight.

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Nieky Holzken open to face legends under the ONE Championship banner

At the age of 40, time may be running out for Nieky Holzken to perform at the highest level of martial arts. But the Team Holzken Helmon founder does not want to hang his gloves yet.

The lifelong martial artist and multi-time kickboxing world champion admits he still has that dog in him to compete, not to chase for world title matchups, but intriguing battles such as his unique rules clash against ‘Sexyama’ inside the Japanese capital city.

Only time will tell whether we’ll see him return for another fight under the ONE spotlight. For now, though, Holzken can sit back and relax after enjoying another quick day in the office.