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ONE Muay Thai Women’s Strawweight Championship

Smilla Sundell vs. Allycia Hellen Rodrigues

Sundell strikes an imposing figure. Still only 18 years old, she first became a world champion at 17 and stands a ridiculous 5-foot-8 with over 69 inch of reach in ONE’s 125-pound weight class. Like other tall kickboxers, Sundell’s boxing is not as developed as the rest of her game, but it does not have to be. She has a hard and accurate jab, even if it is somewhat telegraphed and not especially fast. Sundell also possesses sturdy defense with her hands constantly up and a keen sense of the distance to go along with her enormous length. She also moves quite well and efficiently for such a tall fighter, tending to be exactly where she needs to be. If opponents do not engage within the pocket, Sundell simply pelts them with solid kicks to the legs and body. In terms of weaknesses, Sundell is vulnerable to powerful hooks from close range, a few of which she misses, and a powerful, dynamic kicking game, though she generally checks leg kicks well. While she is already a champion, these observations come with the caveat that Sundell is only 18 and thus still improving. For all we know, she could be a massively better fighter now than in any of her past ONE appearances.

Does Rodrigues, the current ONE muay thai women’s atomweight champion, have the tools to trouble the champion? Honestly, no. She has the old-school muay thai habit of standing in place like a statue and toughing through leg kicks, roundhouse body kicks and front kicks to the chest and stomach. It is hardcore, but represents a horrible strategy against the much taller, bigger and stronger Sundell, who will hurt her plenty with her kicks and jab. Offensively, Rodrigues throws out nice, hard body kicks on occasion, but they are not consistent or powerful enough to take over the fight, especially when Sundell will be hitting her many times in the interim. Plus, Rodrigues lacks the boxing to exploit Sundell’s defense in the pocket.

The only question involves whether or not Sundell gets a late stoppage or this goes the distance. Since Sundell lacks a knockout blow in her arsenal and Rodrigues is quite tough, expect the Swede to take a one-sided decision.

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