IN the art of war, the element of surprise is said to be a major weapon that can tilt the outcome of combat in one’s favor.
Strike the enemy at a time or place or in a manner for which he is unprepared, Sun Tzu says. Surprise can decisively shift the balance of combat power.
In the combat field of mixed martial arts, known in ONE Championship as The Circle, the element of surprise has achieved victory for those who use it well.
Surprise works in two ways. One is when the opponent is totally unsuspecting of your real strength and what you are capable of doing. Then you pull out one rabbit out of the hat after another and spring your surprises. The opponent won’t know what hit him, or her, because he or she was totally unprepared for what you have brought to the table. Surprise is deadly that way.
The other way is when you make a lot of noise and boast to create the impression that you’re not someone anyone would like to tangle with. It’s like puffer fish who puffs itself up to more than double his size to scare off predators who want to eat it. Or the male Magnificent Frigatebird that blows its red chest up to a huge, balloon-like pouch to discourage competition and get the attention of the female birds.
Come to think of it, don’t the male of our species also bulk themselves up in the gym for similar reasons?
In the Circle we have two good examples of both. First is Swedish MMA athlete Smilla Sundell. Only 17, she looks like a regular teen doing 9th grade. She wears braids and seems as wholesome as Apple Streudel. Blonde, not bulky at all, with almost a shy demeanor when she’s introduced, she also always flashes a friendly and dazzling smile—before and after her bout.
Yet this young lady is a killer machine inside the combat ring. She destroys her opponents with both method and aggression. In fact, promoters have had trouble finding opponents for her in the past. There was a time, she says, that they had to match her up against a male fighter.
Smilla has been an unpleasant surprise to those who have faced her inside the Circle. That’s what Australia’s Diandra Martin found out when she was pummeled by Smilla in their ONE debut. Diandra was able to land a solid punch on Smilla’s chin but the younger fighter treated it like it was water off a duck’s back.
Smilla won the bout by TKO, totally demolishing Diandra. After the fight, Smilla hugged her opponent like a thrilled teen-ager and took a selfie with her.
That one fight propelled Smilla right into a title fight against Fil-Am superstar Jackie Buntan, 23, then undefeated in ONE Championship and known for her slick boxing moves and punching power.
Well, Smilla took care of Buntan too. In ONE: Eersel vs. Sadikovic, Buntan got a rude awakening from her younger opponent. She was overpowered and outfought while Smilla made history as ONE’s inaugural Muay Thai women’s strawweight champion. She is ONE’s youngest champion ever and truly deserves her name Smilla “The Hurricane” Sundell.
On the other end of the spectrum is the brash, trash-talking and ultra loud Jarred Brooks. The 28-year old phenom recently defeated Bokang “Little Giant” Masunyane at ONE 156’s strawweight division. The victory put Brooks right in place as worthy challenger to Team Lakay title holder, Joshua Pacio—the only remaining Filipino champion in ONE.
Never shy to assert his worth, Brooks is confident he will snatch the belt away from Pacio, citing how he took down Pacio’s Lakay brother Lito Adiwang and Hiroba Minowa in succession.
“I think it would go the same way as Lito. I would choke him [Pacio] out in the first or second round. I think I’m getting better in almost every fight, and I think I could make him have trouble on the feet and the ground,” Brooks said.
Brooks is Smilla’s antithesis when it comes to self promotion. Smilla never brags and just does her thing. Brooks psyches out his opponents with ultra strong words and a lot of chest-beating.
Both are effective combatants in their own spheres because they don’t just spring surprises. They shock and awe too.