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Danielle Kelly is used to being underestimated both in life and in her career as a submission grappler.
The 28-year-old has been proving people wrong for a long time now so ONE Fight Night 24 doesn't necessarily feel all that different.
Kelly already overcame expectations in her last outing where she defeated Jessa Khan at ONE Fight Night 14 to become the inaugural ONE atomweight submission grappling world champion.
She now faces a very tough test in her first title defense against an opponent who like Khan, has an impressive list of accolades.
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Brazil's Mayssa Bastos brings the prestige of being a nine-time IBJJF world champion amongst other career achievements.
She now looks to add ONE world champion to that list on August 2 when she faces Kelly inside Lumpinee Stadium.
In a recent interview with ONE Championship, Kelly spoke about how she not only expected but embraced the underdog role because she has never felt like she gets the respect she deserves in the first place:
"I just don't think I get enough credit. I'm also a huge underdog, which I expected because she wins a lot of stuff in the lower divisions."
Danielle Kelly finds motivation in this
Whilst some competitors may feel disheartened by being the underdog, this is something that motivates Danielle Kelly.
Her last outing had all of this narrative hanging over it where Khan had not only beaten Kelly in the past but she had gone on to become a world champion.
That fuelled Kelly to prove to herself and everyone else that just because she didn't have the title wins to prove it, didn't mean she wasn't one of the best in the world.
The same can be said for her first title defense where the atomweight world champion will look to keep hold of her belt against an opponent that has a track record for winning gold.
ONE Fight Night 24 will air live in US Primetime, free of charge for Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.
