“I would have finished that fight” – KO artist Natalia Diachkova questions Smilla Sundell’s finishing power
At ONE Fight Night 22 on May 3, Russian striker Natalia Diachkova will get to fight for the top prize of her division. She will lock horns with 19-year-old ONE strawweight Muay Thai world champion Smilla Sundell.
Ahead of her world title shot, 'Karelian Lynx' said some interesting words about the world champion, telling ONE Championship:
“Like in that kickboxing fight in ONE, where she hit the girl all three rounds, but the girl kept standing. I am confident I would have finished that fight earlier.”
The bout Diachkova may have meant was Sundell's sole foray into kickboxing in ONE Championship. 'The Hurricane' defeated Serbia's Milana Bjelogric via a unanimous decision. To most eyes, the world champion did a marvelous showing of dominance as she beat her Serbian foe from pillar to post.
Not to Diachkova, apparently. Let's see if she can do better than Bjelogric in a five-round world title bout against the ever-evolving arsenal of the young Swedish world champion at ONE Fight Night 22.
Smilla Sundell admits Natalia Diachkova poses a threat with her hands and spinning attacks
At ONE Fight Night 21 a few weeks ago, the bout between Smilla Sundell and Natalia Diachkova was announced. The two warrior queens were called to the ring to hype up the bout. When asked by ONE Championship Circle-side commentator Mitch Chilson what she thinks of her challenger, 'The Hurricane' said:
“She [Diachkova] is very strong. She’s got very good boxing, and she comes out of nowhere with her back twists and back kicks.”
This bout may also have a layer of personal vendetta as Diachkova knocked out one of Sundell's teammates, Dokmaipa Fairtex, in her promotional debut. Let's see if this added layer of drama affects the tides of this bout.
ONE Fight Night 22 will air live in U.S. primetime, free of charge for existing Prime Video subscribers in North America.