Danielle Kelly is confident gi BJJ will always be an influential field

ONE Championship athlete and jiu jitsu superstar Danielle Kelly is one of the most influential grapplers in the world currently. In fact, she might have one of the highest levels of social media presence of any athlete across all sports today.

The 27-year-old may very well be the newest iteration of the Ronda Rousey archetype in professional grappling. Kelly's combination of masterful grappling skills, influencer looks, and relatable personality has made her an endearing personality even to non-fans of the sport. Every time Kelly posts about anything on Instagram, it's guaranteed thousands of reactions and engagements.

Her most recent social activity saw Danielle Kelly conduct an Ask Me Anything session on her Instagram stories. Needless to say, her fans jumped at the opportunity to ask their favorite grappler some burning questions.

One insightful query involved the role of Gi jiu jitsu in the current landscape of professional submission grappling. The fan asked Kelly if the use of the combat garb will eventually disappear from the sport.

The Silverfox BJJ athlete answered:

Danielle Kelly’s thoughts on Gi jiu jitsu

I think it'll make a slight comeback since [John] Danaher is coaching big names in Gi matches and everyone's been focusing on No Gi so those [who] want to take the chance to compete at Gi while the focus is No Gi, if that makes any sense lol but Gi has and will always be around"

One can say that No Gi jiu jitsu has been dominating the scene in recent years. Some of the most revered grapplers today like the Ruotolo brothers, ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci, Gordon Ryan, Nicholas Meregali and Danielle Kelly herself have been almost exclusively competing in No Gi. Even the aforementioned Meregali, after winning all world championships in Gi, has have competed in No Gi more.

This doesn't mean, however, the matches in Gi will go away. With the 2023 IBJJF World Championships coming up, a huge spotlight will be put on Gi jiu jitsu. Matches in traditional combat apparel exemplify a different kind of excitement as they showcase a whole new set of techniques not possible in matches without them. We totally agree with Danielle Kelly on her answer.