Danielle Kelly ‘kinda likes’ BJJ in the Circle: “I want to continue testing myself in the cage”

Danielle Kelly wants to continue testing herself by competing inside the circle.

Most submission grapplers outside of ONE Championship don’t have experience competing in that setting. Meanwhile, Kelly has become accustomed to the environment after competing on the global stage three times, leading to two wins, one draw, and two $50,000 performance bonuses.

During an interview with ONE, Kelly had this to say about enjoying the challenge presented by competing in a cage for submission grappling:

“I want to continue testing myself in the cage. I kinda like it. I feel like very few people, like Mikey, you know he uses the cage really well, and he's been really dominant.”

Kelly added:

"But you know, other jiu-jitsu people kind of struggled, I don’t need to name names, but I noticed their game was kind of like, conflicted with the cage, but they still, like, did really well."

Danielle Kelly competed under the ONE banner for the first time against Mei Yamaguchi in March 2022, ending with a draw. Eight months later, she returned to action and made a statement by submitting sambo specialist Mariia Molchanova.

In February of this year – Kelly’s latest ONE appearance – she maintained her unbeaten run in the promotion by securing a unanimous decision win against Ayaka Miura.

On September 29, Kelly looks to make history by becoming the first female submission grappling world champion in ONE. It’ll be easier said than done, as she must get through Jessa Khan, who holds a win against the American from 2021.

Danielle Kelly vs. Jessa Khan will determine the inaugural women’s atomweight submission grappling world champion at ONE Fight Night 14. The September 29 event featuring three world title matchups can be seen live and for free by North American viewers with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.