Smilla Sundell Scores Stunning Second-Round TKO Of Natalia Diachkova At ONE Fight Night 22
Smilla “The Hurricane” Sundell may have earned the most bittersweet victory of her young career in U.S. primetime on Friday, May 3.
Although she stopped Natalia “Karelian Lynx” Diachkova via second-round TKO in the main event of ONE Fight Night 22 on Prime Video, she didn’t get to keep her ONE Women’s Strawweight Muay Thai World Title.
The 19-year-old Swede could not make weight on Thursday, so the matchup was moved to a 126.5-pound catchweight affair and Sundell was stripped of her belt.
However, that didn’t stop the former divisional queen from fighting like a ONE World Champion at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
“The Hurricane” did take some damage in the opening round as Diachkova slammed accurate jabs and wild straight rights into her face. And in the second frame, Sundell seemed to be on shaky legs after the Russian pelted her with attack after attack.
But as the final moments of round two dwindled, Sundell dominated.
The Fairtex Training Center representative backed up Diachkova with a hard right cross and then followed up with a shovel hook to the body. “Karelian Lynx” turned away, and Sundell swarmed in for the finish, prompting referee Olivier Coste to stop the fight at 2:59 of the round.
Sundell improved her overall record to 36-5 – including a 5-0 mark in ONE – and will now go back on the hunt for the gold she once held.