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Despite another trademark finish at ONE Fight Night 22, Swedish powerhouse Smilla Sundell insists she was far from being at the top of her game.
'The Hurricane' looked back on her victory in a post-fight interview with Sportskeeda MMA, admitting that she was the second best in their main event showdown this past Friday, May 3.
Smilla Sundell shared:
"It was, it was a very hard battle. She was tough. She got me good in the first round. I saw double from round one. Round two was quite shaky, too...So I really don't know what I did in the fight."
Watch the full interview here:
Indeed, the 19-year-old survived a tough challenge against a resolute Natalia Diachkova, who came inside the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium all fired up to claim the ONE strawweight Muay Thai world championship that was vacated after 'The Hurricane' was stripped of the crown.
And for as long as the battle lasted, 'Karelian Lynx' looked as if she was inching closer to her dream of attaining the 26 pounds of gold.
However, that dream was handed a harsh reality check by 'The Hurricane,' who weathered the storm and punched her way to a finish right at the buzzer of the second round.
Smilla Sundell says missing weight might have affected her performance
Though she lost her gold, Smilla Sundell won the hearts of many as she turned up the heat and fought like a ONE world champion at ONE Fight Night 22 last weekend.
Still, losing her coveted strap outside the Circle was a bitter pill to swallow, as she told during the official post-event presser:
"I don't know if it impacted my performance. Maybe it did. But I just went in there to do my job. Yeah, I did."
Despite the rocky start, there was no stopping the Fairtex Training Center when she had a target locked inside the Thai capital city.
With the win, the Pattaya-based fighter upped her overall resume to 36-5 and 5-0 in ONE Championship.
North American fans with an active subscription can relive the entire card via Amazon Prime Video.
