"She's made for this stage" - Smilla Sundell all praise for Natalia Diachkova after ONE Fight Night 22 barnburner
Former ONE strawweight Muay Thai world champion Smilla Sundell has proved that she is the best fighter in the weight class. That's despite not being able to walk away with the golden strap against Natalia Diachkova in the main event of ONE Fight Night 22 this past weekend at the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Sundell weathered an early storm from Diachkova and displayed her full championship caliber by scoring a TKO finish in the dying seconds of the second round. In doing so, she maintained her immaculate record in the world's largest martial arts organization.
Following their exciting and top-class encounter, 'The Hurricane' has tipped off her hat to 'Karelian Lynx' for her performance that gave Sundell a run for her money.
The 19-year-old Swedish phenom mentioned her high praise for the Russian knockout artist during her post-fight interview with the South China Morning Post, as she said:
"Yeah, I think she showed that she's made for this stage too."
See the interview below:
Sundell was stripped of her world title during the weigh-ins for missing the limit of their championship match by 1.5 pounds, making her ineligible to recapture it even with a victory.
Smilla Sundell recorded her fifth victory in ONE Championship with ONE Fight Night 22 triumph
This latest win for Smilla Sundell has pushed her record in ONE Championship to 5-0 with three TKO/KO finishes, which equates to an incredible 60 percent finish rate. Additionally, she was able to successfully defend her world title twice.
Aside from Diachkova, the Fairtex Training Center representative also defeated Diandra Martin in February 2022 at ONE: Full Circle, Jackie Buntan in April 2022, Milana Bjelogrlic in May 2023 at ONE Friday Fights 18, and Allycia Hellen Rodrigues in September 2023 at ONE Fight Night 14.
North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch all the action from ONE Fight Night 22 via the free event replay.