ONE Fight Night 7: Danielle Kelly vs. Ayaka Miura preview and predictions

Danielle Kelly and Ayaka Miura are all set to showcase the true beauty of the grappling arts at ONE Fight Night 7: Lineker vs Andrade II.

This Friday, February 24, two of the best submission artists in the world will figure in a historic 119-pound catchweight submission grappling bout – the first of its kind inside the halls of the fabled Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

ONE Fight Night 7 will air live on US Primetime and free of charge for Amazon Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.

Following two virtuosic outings inside the circle, Kelly is primed for a crack at the inaugural women’s atomweight submission grappling throne.

However, the Silver Fox BJJ savant must first eliminate the imminent threat standing in her way.

Kelly’s ever-evolving skills were on full display when she took Mei Yamaguchi into deep waters and made quick work of Mariia Molchanova.

The American has won back-to-back performance bonuses and a third one might be in order if she can submit the former ONE women’s strawweight world title challenger.

Miura, meanwhile, needs no introduction among ONE fans after proving that judo works in mixed martial arts. Now, she’s ready to take the Japanese martial art to even greater heights and prove its effectiveness in grappling-exclusive matches.

Aptly nicknamed ‘Zombie’ for her relentless fervor, Miura has already submitted four opponents with her unstoppable signature move, the ‘Ayaka Lock’. A big victory over Kelly will certainly put her back in word title contention in a second sport.

As always, Sportskeeda MMA’s revered ONE Championship team has offered their take on this pivotal grappling showdown at ONE Fight Night 7.

Here are our picks:

Vince Richards: Danielle Kelly by submission

The match between Danielle Kelly and Ayaka Miura brings forth an interesting clash of styles between two of the best grapplers in the world.

Miura is an intimidating judoka while Kelly is a tricky Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace. It’s an intriguing fight to watch since both fighters are fully capable of putting on highlight-reel submission finishes.

Could Miura, a former ONE women’s strawweight world title contender, impose her strength over Kelly or can the American star be too much of a puzzle for ‘The Zombie’ to solve?

It’s likely that the fight could go the distance and end in a decision, but there’s always the chance that this will end as soon as possible.

Miura, as dangerous as she is, is entering Kelly’s domain and it’s a space the 27-year-old has excelled at. If Kelly can get Miura’s back then it’s all but over for the Japanese star.

---

Ben Imperial: Danielle Kelly by submission

Ayaka Miura will come in with a size advantage in her match against Danielle Kelly, and has the judo throws to ensure that she will be on dominant position when they head to the ground.

That said, I believe it will be a great opportunity for Kelly to prove that BJJ favors technique over size. If she picks up another win - and possibly another bonus - it will definitely be huge not only for her career, but to BJJ as a sport.

I don't want to count Miura out of this match completely because she can be quite relentless if she gets to her position.

Kelly has mentioned in past interviews that she is training from positions where she's at a disadvantage, so it will be interesting to see how it translates into a real match.

I'm looking at a very close decision if it goes the distance, but I'm taking Kelly to claim the submission between the six to the eight-minute mark.

Ted Razon: Danielle Kelly by submission (heel hook)

In recent interviews, Danielle Kelly has stated her preference for chokes over joint locks. She even claimed that leg locks are starting to be overrated.

However, I truly believe that her path to victory on this one will be by attacking Ayaka Miura’s lower body.

Considering Miura is a natural strawweight, Kelly won’t be able to overpower her as she did against Mei Yamaguchi.

‘Zombie’ is also quite the explosive athlete given her judo background, so it might be challenging for Kelly to bum-rush and quickly take her back as she did to Mariia Molchanova.

Plus, Miura is an aggressive top-control grappler as well, who will likely try to impose her physical dominance as soon as the bell rings.

The key for Kelly here is her attacking guard, which is quite similar to that of ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion Mikey Musumeci.

Miura will try her darndest to put her in the scarf hold/kesa-gatame position, which will likely leave her open for possible leglock entries.

As we’ve seen back in her jiu-jitsu days, Danielle Kelly has a multitude of attacks from there and can put immense pressure on the Japanese’s legs with her choice of a kneebar, ankle lock, toe hold, or heel hook.