Jackie Buntan reacts to Smilla Sundell’s kickboxing debut: “It makes sense”

Filipino-American Muay Thai star Jackie Buntan is not at all surprised that reigning ONE strawweight Muay Thai world champion Smilla Sundell will also be competing in kickboxing under ONE Championship.

Swedish champion Sundell will make her ONE kickboxing debut at ONE Friday Fights 18 on May 26 at the famed Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok. She will take on Serbian Milana Bjelogric in a catchweight kickboxing bout.

Reacting to the development, Jackie Buntan said she understands where Smilla Sundell is coming from with her decision as she has the same goals for her combat sports career.

The Boxing Works standout told ONE Championship in an interview:

“It makes sense [that she’d go to kickboxing]. I’m sure she has the same goal as me and other girls in the division to go after both those belts, kickboxing, and Muay Thai. I assumed that she’d be defending her title first in Muay Thai, but I know she’s coming back from an injury, so who knows?”

Jackie Buntan took on Smilla Sundell in April last year for the inaugural ONE strawweight Muay Thai world title and lost by unanimous decision.

She has since picked herself up from the defeat, racking up back-to-back victories, the most recent coming earlier this month at ONE Fight Night 10 on Prime Video, which was ONE Championship’s first-ever live on-ground event in the United States.

The Southern California fighter defeated Australian Diandra Martin with an impressive technical knockout (head and body combination) victory in the opening round of their scheduled fight on May 5 in Colorado.

She is now angling to get another shot at the Muay Thai gold held by Sundell, who is yet to defend her title, as well as compete for a strawweight kickboxing world title belt.

Fans in North America can rewatch Jackie Buntan’s highlight-reel finish and the entire ONE Fight Night 10 card via replay on Amazon Prime.