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ONE Championship star Danielle Kelly has revealed her biggest grappling influences.
Kelly has evolved into a well-known name in the jiu-jitsu community. At 26 years old, the Philadelphia native has the potential to become a household name for combat sports fans after signing with ONE Championship.
During an interview with The MMA Super-Fan, the Brazilian jiu-jitsu phenom had this to say about her most significant influences:
“It’s kind of been a while since I looked up to anyone, just because I’ve had the mindset that I want to beat them. I’m kinda like, my own biggest fan. But honestly, I like Roger Gracie for being his age and everything. He competed against 'Buchecha', actually; speaking of that, who’s at ONE now. Like his last match was against 'Buchecha', and like' for taking such a long-time off of competing. He went out there and subbed 'Buchecha'. It was a gi match. I really like how Roger rolled."
She added:
“When I started jiu-jitsu, I also liked the Mendes brothers [Guilherme and Rafael] and their jiu-jitsu. They are really exciting. And then there’s Garry Tonon. I’ve also watched him a lot, especially for MMA. I guess Ryan Hall at one point, but not now. Back then, when I started, Ryan Hall was a huge deal.”
Kelly debuted for ONE with a draw against Mei Yamaguchi at ONE X. She recently announced that her next grappling match will be against sambo specialist Mariia Molchanova on November 18, which will continue the ongoing rivalry between jiu-jitsu and sambo.
Watch The MMA Super-Fan interview Danielle Kelly below:
Danielle Kelly is rooting for the "smaller" Ruotolo brothers against "prime" Gordon Ryan
The Ruotolo brothers, Kade and Tye, both 19, join Danielle Kelly as the future of ONE Championship’s submission grappling scene.
Although they are still young, some have wondered how the Ruotolo brothers would do against Gordon Ryan. During the same interview, Kelly had this to say about the hypothetical matchups:
“But I always root for the smaller guys. But if the brothers can be against Gordon, I want to see them do really well. But Gordon is in his prime, and he proved that at ADCC, so it’s kind of hard to say.”
The primary concern for the Ruotolos would be their size disadvantage against Ryan. Not to mention, 'King' is arguably the best no-Gi grappler of all time.
Nonetheless, the twin brothers are only 19 and have continued to shock the jiu-jitsu community thus far, so can never be written off.
