SUMMARY
- Smilla Sundell will face Natalia Diachkova at ONE Fight Night 22.
- Ahead of her Strawweight Muay Thai World Championship defense, Sundell takes inspiration from Stamp Fairtex.
Under the guidance of the renowned Fairtex Training Center in Pattaya, Thailand, Smilla Sundell has enjoyed a meteoric rise to the top of the Muay Thai world.
“The Hurricane” will put her position as the ONE Women’s Strawweight Muay Thai World Champion on the line in the ONE Fight Night 22 on Prime Video main event on Friday, May 3, when she faces Russian knockout artist Natalia Diachkova at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
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Diachkova presents a real threat to the Swedish superstar’s reign, with her devastating punching power looming as a genuine danger. But ahead of the second defence of her women’s strawweight Muay Thai crown, Sundell has lifted the lid on her not-so-secret weapon.
Smilla Sundell is following in Stamp Fairtex’s footsteps
Sharing the mats with Thai megastar Stamp Fairtex can only be a good thing for a young star such as Smilla Sundell. Stamp is perhaps ONE Championship’s biggest star, having set the promotion alight with her versatile fighting style and undeniable charisma.
The 26-year-old became the first combat sports athlete in history to win World Titles in three separate sports last year, when she added the ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Title to her previous reigns as both the atomweight Muay Thai and kickboxing divisional queen.
Sundell and Stamp share a close friendship and, ahead of her showdown with Diachkova, Sundell lifted the lid on what her Fairtex Training Center teammate is like behind the scenes.
“She’s always been a happy girl and trains hard every day. She’s basically the same funny girl, still hungry (to get wins),” she said.
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Sundell became the youngest World Champion in ONE’s history when she defeated Jackie Buntan for the inaugural women’s strawweight Muay Thai crown in 2022 when she was just 17 years old. Still just 19 years old, Sundell says that Stamp is an inspiration to her as a young athlete.
“I think I learned that you can achieve whatever you like as long as you put in the work,” she said. “But I learned that from my parents too. But maybe more practical, in a sense, because Stamp did it in martial arts.”
Stamp is preparing for a World Title defence of her own. The ONE Atomweight MMA World Champion will put her title on the line in the ONE 167 on Prime Video main event when she faces former training partner Denice Zamboanga on June 7.