"We really love to see it" - ONE Championship hails Smilla Sundell and Jackie Buntan's sportsmanship after ONE 156 title bout

ONE Championship regularly sees fighters offer their respect for one another after a hard-fought battle, much like Smilla Sundell and Jackie Buntan’s war at ONE 156.

On Twitter, the promotion shared a clip showing the evident change in Buntan’s appearance before and after the fight. Despite her loss, the Filipino-American approached Sundell like a friend to congratulate her on the win.

The caption read:

“We really love to see it ❤️ #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship”

Check out the twitter post below:

The pair battled for the inaugural ONE women’s strawweight Muay Thai world title in the co-main event of ONE 156. Buntan was riding a three-fight win streak in the promotion while Sundell was coming off an impressive debut win in February 2022.

In a battle between Buntan’s experience and Sundell’s youth, it was the 17-year-old Swede who controlled the fight with her length and power. ‘The Hurricane’ pressured Buntan throughout the match, and the 23-year-old had no choice but to rely on her counter-punching.

It wasn’t enough though, as Sundell’s strikes constantly found their way to her opponent’s head, which resulted to a lot of swelling on Buntan’s face.

After five rounds, there was no doubt about who won the fight. Buntan readily shook her rival’s hand as soon as the fight was stopped and later hugged the gold belt-draped teenager.

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What’s next for Smilla Sundell and Jackie Buntan in ONE Championship?

Now that their battle is over, Smilla Sundell and Jackie Buntan are looking forward to their next challenge in ONE Championship.

The newly-minted ONE women’s strawweight Muay Thai world champion is back to work in the gym and will wait for the next woman up. She will surely have a large target on her back now that she reigns at the top of the division.

Meanwhile, Buntan looks to have recovered from the damage she took from her fight and is already looking for a rematch against Sundell. She is eager to get back in action and has even expressed interest in competing in kickboxing if that’s where the next ready opponent is.

After watching their five-round war, though, it looks inevitable that their paths will one day cross again.