Danielle Kelly shares the adversity she has had to face growing up

American grappler Danielle Kelly goes through the same inner conflict as any regular person who’s trying to chase their dreams.

As Kelly tells it, success didn’t happen overnight. It took a long time for her to make something positive out of a difficult situation. Whether those difficulties arose in the gym or in her private life, she’s learned to put her best foot forward in the face of adversity.

Sharing a little inspo to her fans on Instagram this week, Danielle Kelly explained what keeps her motivated when she wants to give up.

The 27-year-old superstar said:

“I didn’t have much support coming up. If I did it was very little. Being on my own for years I had to jumble school, work, and training while coming up in the ranks to catch up with people my level. And on top of all of these at a point I didn’t have a set place to stay. Whenever I’m frustrated at training I think about the worse times and how it made me feel. I basically tell myself to stop being a baby, it could be worse. I work hard now knowing the struggles I’ve had. There’s no “luck."

At the moment, Kelly is currently working overtime as she trains for her upcoming battle against Japanese MMA fighter and judo black belt Ayaka Miura. They’re slated to lock arms on Friday, February 25, at ONE Fight Night 7 on Prime Video.

The news of her return to the circle had privately reached Kelly soonafter her awe-inspiring finish over Mariia Molchanova last November. Excited to begin the year on another strong note, Kelly hopes she is injury free after her next match so that she can potentially get a spot on the US card in Denver.

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Danielle Kelly hopes to roll with former UFC strawweight world champion Rose Namajunas in the future

Danielle Kelly was all smiles as she posed with former UFC strawweight world champion ‘Thug’ Rose Namajunas backstage at Fury Pro Grappling.

On December 30, Namajunas participated in a submission grappling bout against fellow UFC star Gillian Robertson in Philadelphia. Previously, ‘Thug' and Danielle Kelly were slated to face each other back in 2021, but Namajunas withdrew on short notice with Carla Esparza filling in as a replacement.

Although the match didn’t come to fruition, Kelly and Namajunas still have a mutual respect for each other. Kelly shared a photo of themselves posing backstage before the match with the following caption:

“Haven’t gotten to post but proof that I’m lowkey 6’0 💪🏼 It was cool to catch up with @rosenamajunas before her match, I hated being that person to ask for a pic lol, we were suppose to compete against each-other a year ago. They were so cool and down to earth. Looking forward to roll together in the future.”