Danielle Kelly proud to be ‘face of women’s jiu-jitsu’ in ONE Championship

Danielle Kelly is fully embracing the opportunity to become the face of women’s jiu-jitsu.

The submission grappling superstar will return to action this Friday night as she heads to the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok for ONE Fight Night 7 on Prime Video. Meeting her inside the ring will be accomplished mixed martial artist and third-degree Judo black belt Ayaka Miura.

Ahead of their highly anticipated showdown, Kelly shared her thoughts on being the potential face of the sport during a ONE Fight Night 7 pre-event interview:

“Maybe, but I feel like I'm pretty small. So I like to think I'm the face of the smaller women in jiu-jitsu. But you know, yeah, I think I'm heading that way, but I just got to keep my feet moving more and get more experienced and go against many girls. But yeah, it's a pretty good feeling.”

Danielle Kelly’s small stature will once again play a role in Friday night’s affair as she takes on Miura, a former ONE women’s strawweight world title challenger - one weight class up from Kelly’s atomweight division.

As a result, the pair will square off in a catchweight bout. Amazon Prime Video subscribers in North America can watch the two women warriors battle it out live and for free in U.S. primetime on February 24.

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Ayaka Miura got advice from Danielle Kelly’s first ONE Championship opponent

To fully prepare herself for a submission grappling match with Danielle Kelly, Ayaka Miura is getting advice from someone who has shared the Circle with her already.

In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda MMA, Miura revealed that reached out to Kelly’s ONE X opponent Mei Yamaguchi to get some helpful hints that could help her score what would most certainly be seen as an upset:

"I spoke to Mei-san [Yamaguchi] and she shared with me her experience in the fight with Kelly," Miura revealed.

When Danielle Kelly made her promotional debut in March 2022, she was tasked with taking on Japanese women’s MMA icon Mei Yamaguchi in a 12-minute submission grappling matchup. Though Kelly was unable to secure a submission before the time limit expired, she displayed dominance throughout the meeting and earned a $50,000 bonus from the ONE CEO for her efforts.

Yamaguchi may not have defeated Danielle Kelly, but she survived. If Ayaka Miura can do the same, that alone could be seen as a victory for the Japanese standout.

Watch the match below: