Danielle Kelly feels she’s grown a lot in between fights in ONE Championship

Submission grappler Danielle Kelly feels like she’s come into her own since her promotional debut with ONE Championship. Just recently, Kelly scored a stunning finish against multi-time sambo world champion Mariia Molchanova by way of a rear-naked choke at ONE on Prime Video 4.

The victory subsequently earned Kelly her second consecutive performance bonus in as many matches in the circle. Her first performance bonus of USD $50,000 was awarded to her following a draw against MMA veteran Mei Yamaguchi at ONE X.

Reflecting upon the pains and gains of being a professional grappler, Danielle Kelly is proud to have experienced some growth in terms of conquering her nerves and letting her instincts do all the work. She told ONE:

“And I think just looking back at the match with Mei [Yamaguchi], things really didn’t start to click with me until like it was last six or seven minutes left in the match and I started to get my groove a little bit. I think my last match speaks for itself. I just had to take time to get used to it.”

Before becoming a household name at ONE, Kelly competed in prestigious grappling tournaments and organizations, including the 2014 Pan Jiu-Jitsu IBJJF Championship, Who’s Number One (WNO), and Fury Pro Grappling. She has notable wins against top jiu-jitsu black belts like Jessica Crane, Sofia Amarante, and Cynthia Calvillo, which caught some public attention.

Now, Kelly’s been summoned again for her third match under the ONE banner. She is thrilled to face judo stylist and MMA fighter Ayaka Miura, whose aggressive and forward-fighting approach will be a welcome challenge for the American star.

Watch Danielle Kelly look for a second quick finish over Ayaka Miura on Friday, February 10, at ONE Fight Night 7 on Prime Video.

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Ayaka Miura is excited to compete against Danielle Kelly to show off her “strengths as an MMA fighter”

‘Zombie’ Ayaka Miura can’t wait to prove her detractors wrong with a submission win over Danielle Kelly in February.

The Japanese native had a rough start to 2022, suffering from injuries and difficult back-to-back defeats in MMA. Specifically, a decision loss against reigning ONE women’s strawweight queen Xiong Jing Nan at ONE: Heavy Hitters at the beginning of last year haunts her to this day.

With a grappling match booked for Miura, the 32-year-old Judoka hopes to redeem herself against one of the best grapplers of this generation.

In an Instagram post, she wrote:

“A grappling match with Jiu-Jitsu world champion Danielle Kelly has been decided. I will show off my strengths as an MMA fighter and win. People laughing saying it's impossible. Please watch. I was seriously injured in a title match.”