“I was more impressed with Yamada” - Danielle Kelly not sold on Mayssa Bastos’ ONE debut
Danielle Kelly wasn't overly impressed with Mayssa Bastos' ONE Championship debut performance.
On March 8, Bastos competed under the ONE banner for the first time in a women's atomweight submission grappling bout against Kanae Yamada. The nine-time BJJ world champion failed to submit Yamada, but she did emerge victorious by unanimous decision, making her a favorite to challenge for the divisional crown.
Later this week, Aug. 2, Bastos will be featured in the ONE Fight Night 24 co-main event when she challenges Kelly for the ONE women's atomweight grappling world title.
During an interview with Jordan Teaches Jiujitsu, Kelly had this to say about Bastos' win against Yamada:
"I watched her in the Yamada match, and I was more impressed with Yamada, you know. The first two minutes I thought Mayssa might get the finish, but Yamada really toughened it out, and I don't think she's getting that much credit."
ONE Fight Night 24 goes down inside the iconic Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Friday's event featuring two world title fights can be watched live and for free by North American and Canadian viewers with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
Watch Danielle Kelly's entire interview with Jordan Teaches Jiujitsu below:
Is Mayssa Bastos the toughest opponent of Danielle Kelly's ONE Championship tenure?
Danielle Kelly made her ONE Championship debut in March 2022.
Since then, the American superstar has acquired the following results - Mei Yamaguchi (draw), Mariia Molchanova (rear-naked choke win), Ayaka Miura (unanimous decision win), and Jessa Khan (unanimous decision win).
Khan is the only former opponent of Kelly's who has consistently competed in top-tier jiu-jitsu tournaments. Therefore, many people believe the rematch with Khan was Kelly's toughest test in ONE, which will change on Friday.
Although it's debatable, Mayssa Bastos would be the most talented submission grappler on Kelly's resume. The Brazilian challenger is a nine-time BJJ world champion, including the following credentials - 3x IBJJF NoGi gold medals, 3x IBJJF Pans NoGi gold medals, 5x IBJJF European gold medals, and more.
At ONE Fight Night 24, Bastos looks to add a ONE Championship world title to her resume by emerging victorious against Kelly.