"I just kneed over her" - Smilla Sundell recalls the moment she broke the fight open against Jackie Buntan
Undisputed ONE women's strawweight Muay Thai world champion Smilla Sundell has been tested several times under the world's largest martial arts organization.
However, as far as 'The Hurricane' is concerned, it's still her world title-clinching win over Jackie Buntan that stands out as her toughest fight yet.
The pair of fearsome female warriors shared the Circle at ONE 165 back in 2022, with the inaugural 125-pound crown on the line.
Early on, it appeared Buntan was getting the better of the exchanges in the first two rounds.
The Filipina-American was always one step faster, while Sundell was uncharacteristically sluggish and not as electric as fans are used to.
Later on, the 19-year-old prodigy admitted she had a tough cut and had to dig deep to get the W.
Sundell's turning point came in round 3, where she landed a beautiful knee strike to get her offense going. The Swedish star recalled in an interview with Calf Kick Sports:
"Then, I just tried something in the fight. I was supposed to take a step back and knee her [to the body], but I just kind of kneed over her."
From that point on, it was all Sundell. The Fairtex Training Center product let her hands go and kept tagging Buntan with ferocious punch combinations in the championship rounds to get the well-deserved unanimous decision nod.
Smilla Sundell looking to bring the same killer instinct against Natalia Diachkova
After successfully defending her 26 pounds of gold against Allycia Hellen Rodrigues last year, Sundell will look to do it again against another formidable adversary.
At ONE Fight Night 22 on May 3, 'The Hurricane' will trade fists with knockout artist Natalia Diachkova. In the same interview, Sundell shared how she manages to unleash her inner beast once the bell rings. She said:
"I don't know, maybe I'm just an angry person inside? I don't know. But, if I don't go forward and punch [my opponent] then I'm losing my head. So I think it's just me wanting to win."
ONE Fight Night 22 will emanate from Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. The full event is available free on-demand, live on US Primetime for Prime Video subscribers in North America.
Watch Smilla Sundell's interview in its entirety: