"Staying focused" - Danielle Kelly hints at first defense of ONE atomweight submission grappling world title
Danielle Kelly's first world title defense could be on the horizon.
The Brazilian jiu-jitsu phenom hinted in an Instagram post that she could be defending the ONE atomweight submission grappling world title in her next fight in ONE Championship.
Kelly has been touring the United States teaching in seminars, but she's also used this time to train for a possible world title defense.
"May have some match news," wrote Danielle Kelly. "Staying focused."
Kelly is undefeated in ONE Championship and slowly became one of the faces of women's Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
The American star is 3-0-1 in the promotion, and her lone draw against Mei Yamaguchi was when ONE Championship still used its old ruleset for its submission grappling matches.
She's since racked up three straight wins against Sambo world champion Mariia Molchanova, former ONE world title contender Ayaka Miura, and IBJJF world champion Jessa Khan.
Kelly's unanimous decision win over Khan at ONE Fight Night 14 was also a historic one for her.
Not only did she capture the inaugural ONE atomweight submission grappling world champion, but she exorcised her past demons against the Cambodian-American phenom.
Khan held a win over Kelly when they faced each other under the Who's Number One banner, and the American star's win could even lead to a trilogy bout between them.
Danielle Kelly revisits her old love for wrestling
Brazilian jiu-jitsu isn't the only grappling sport Danielle Kelly is skilled in.
Part of what makes Kelly such a dangerous fighter in submission grappling is the wrestling technique she developed during her school days.
In an interview with Chewjitsu Podcast, Kelly revealed how she fell in love with the sport and how she used wrestling whenever she fought in BJJ and submission grappling.
She said:
"While I was in mid sixth to seventh grade, [wrestling] was what my coach made me do at the time to help my jiu-jitsu takedowns in competition. So then eventually I fell in love with wrestling, and I thought I was going to do it in college, and then I ended up not doing it in college."
Watch Kelly's entire interview below: