The sky might be the limit for some athletes, but not ONE Strawweight Muay Thai World Champion Smilla “The Hurricane” Sundell.
At just 19 years old, there’s very little in her way except, of course, her next challenger – Natalia “Karelian Lynx” Diachkova. The two clash at ONE Fight Night 22 this Saturday, 4 May, inside Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
After making her professional debut at 14 and winning her first World Title before she could legally drive on her own in most countries, the Fairtex Training Center standout has turned plenty of heads.
That includes Filipino strawweight MMA star Lito “Thunder Kid” Adiwang, who marvelled at the teen’s achievements.
“She might be young, but her level of experience with all her competition and training in the gym is different,” Adiwang said.
“The level of the people she’s training with daily and the people she’s faced makes her different.”
The 30-year-old praised the Swede’s ability to change styles on the fly. After all, Sundell can use her reach to counter effectively but also fight from within the pocket.
“She’s got the advantage when it comes to timing and her rhythm in Muay Thai,” Adiwang said.
“Another one of those advantages is her reach. She’s very tall, she uses her height to her advantage, and she knows how to use it for her Muay Thai. She can pressure as well if she needs to, but she can also hang back and look for counters, and that’s her advantage.”
For Adiwang, anything can happen given Diachkova’s ability to knock people out. But for him, this is Sundell’s fight to lose.
“I think this match is going to end up being a very technical match. Still, the edge goes to the champ, Sundell, in this match,” he said.
“One thing she should look at against Diachkova is her power and boxing. But if she keeps her composure against Diachkova’s pressure and counter effectively, I’ll definitely be taking Sundell.”