Nieky Holzken is returning to the global stage at ONE Fight Night 11. This time he will be back in kickboxing gloves, ready to embark on a path toward the top. After competing at ONE Championship’s tenth-anniversary event, ONE X, last year in Muay Thai, Holzken is ready to get back to his roots.
Nieky Holzken Returns in Kickboxing Contest at ONE Fight Night 11
On June 9, Holzken meets Arian Sadikovic in a lightweight kickboxing contest. The match will be contested in a ring inside Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok. The Dutchman is hoping a win will erase the bitter taste of defeat.
“I was supposed to fight Islam Murtazaev and trained for 10 weeks with big [kickbocking] gloves for that fight. Four days before I was due to go to Singapore, I got a call that he could not fight. On that day, Liam Nolan fought and won by KO. They offered him to fight me one week later. I signed the contract, but it was not kickboxing rules. It was Muay Thai rules. I didn’t train in small gloves, but that’s my fault. You don’t want to waste those 10 weeks. You sacrifice everything, and you want to fight,” Holzken told ONE.
The next day, Sinsamut Klinmee stepped in under Muay Thai rules. Not wanting to back away from a challenge, Holzken accepted. The result was a shocking knockout for the Thai and a step back for Holzken.
“I was in very good shape. Everything was working out very well. The low kicks were on point. My conditioning was on point after the first round. I wasn’t tired. The only thing was that I had a game plan for Islam with 10-ounce gloves. And that fight was with 4-ounce gloves, which changes everything. Your defense is very different than with 10-ounce gloves. It was my fault for accepting it, but I accept that I lost by one punch. It was a good punch. He caught me, and I went down. I got over it very fast,” Holzken recalled.
The Dutch legend may be nearing 40, but Holzken is not ready to ride off into the sunset. “The Natural” still feels great physically and is prepared to prove any doubters wrong. He plans to use the global platform of ONE Fight Night 11 to show that the world age is just a number when you take care of yourself.
“For me, age is just a number. I don’t feel 39. I don’t train like I’m 39. I train like I did when I was 25. I only have to keep in mind that I have to recover more, eat more, and rest. I’m going to win, and people are going to see that I don’t fight like somebody who’s 39,” Holzken said.
That is why Holzken has his eyes set on the gold. “The Natural” wants to reach the mountaintop one more time and prove he is still among the elite. With ONE Lightweight Kickboxing and Muay Thai World Champion Regian Eersel competing on the card, he will have the opportunity to show the reigning king he is very much still in the title picture.
“I don’t come for money fights. I come for my legacy and to win. I know I have a good name in the kickboxing world, but I want to be champion again. I want to stop when I’m champion. That’s my goal. And I’ll do everything to get there.”
ONE Fight Night 11 airs live on Prime Video on Friday, June 9. The action begins at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. The event is free for all U.S. and Canadian Amazon Prime members.
