Danielle Kelly loves ONE Championship’s focus on women athletes

Danielle Kelly is an American grappler who competes in ONE Championship's women's submission grappling. With two bouts in the ONE circle in 2022, Kelly is extremely happy with the treatment she receives from ONE.

The Brazilian jiu-jitsu star also greatly appreciates how women are treated the same as men in ONE Championship. In an interview with ONE, Danielle Kelly explained:

"And also, as a female athlete too, I feel like, again, it goes back to respect. I think their female athletes are respected. They're pushed, and the pay is the same. That's like, that's always an issue, like with the girl athletes are like, workers. It's always that and it's good to see a promotion pushing that."

Many of the biggest stars in ONE Championship are women. They include Angela Lee, Wondergirl and Supergirl Jaroonsak, Ham Seo Hee, Janet Todd and, of course, Stamp Fairtex, who is booked for a match against striking all-star Anissa Meksen at ONE on Prime Video 6 on January 13.

Danielle Kelly added that this treatment is what separates ONE Championship from its competition:

"So I think that's going to set them off to a good start and everything. So I think that's what sets them apart, that's what I mean."

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Danielle Kelly and Angela Lee ready for a showdown?

There is a growing rivalry between grappling star Kelly and ONE women's atomweight world champion Angela Lee. In a ONE Championship and Prime Video joint press conference, Kelly was asked about grappling against Lee.

Kelly responded that she wants to focus mainly on real grapplers:

“I’m a jiu-jitsu person so I’ve been focusing on legit grapplers. But if they want to give me that match, I’ll take it in a heartbeat.”

Singaporean-American Angela Lee responded that Kelly is just trying to stir up drama. She dared Kelly to compete with her in MMA:

“She’s trying to stir up drama saying that… Step into the circle with me, put on your MMA gloves, and let's go.”

Kelly and Lee may be on a collision course for a battle in submission grappling. ONE Championship is canvassing fans for their reactions to a potential fight between the two stars.

On Instagram, ONE asked:

"Who wants to see THIS grudge match? 👀 [Angela Lee] [Danielle Kelly]"