"Take her out with her own move" - Danielle Kelly envisions the perfect way to defeat challenger Mayssa Bastos
Danielle Kelly would feel amply vindicated in the eyes of the jiu-jitsu world, if she utilized Mayssa Bastos' signature 'berimbolo' against her, during their world title duel this Friday.
All eyes are on Kelly, as the inaugural ONE atomweight submission grappling queen defends her crown for the first time at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, at ONE Fight Night 24.
Although the Philadelphia native carries a historic legacy in ONE Championship, she carries an enormous amount of pressure to sustain her dominancy against a high-profile BJJ star.
AOJ representative, Mayssa Bastos, will be Danielle Kelly's most difficult challenger. Her unstoppable 'berimbolo' - an effective guard technique that is performed to take control of an opponent's back through inversion or spinning - is proven to be one of the most dangerous weapons she has in her arsenal.
Danielle Kelly, who specializes in a wide range of submissions, would therefore, love nothing better than to defeat the highly-hyped Bastos using the 'berimbolo' against her.
Speaking to ONE, Kelly described how she plans to submit Bastos this Friday night:
"Taking [her] back. If I somehow got her back and choked her. You know, they all love taking the back, the Mendes brothers and everyone there. So it'd be kinda cool if I did that, if I played her game and [take] her out with her own move."
ONE Fight Night 24 will air live in US Primetime, free of charge for Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.
"I'm a huge underdog" - Danielle Kelly is determined to extend her legacy as the No.1 atomweight submission grappling world champion with a convincing victory at OFN24
Danielle Kelly isn't training hard to become second best. She's settling to become the best in the world for as long as possible.
The Silver Fox BJJ representative has been an underdog her entire life for many reasons. One of them, which continues to be a topic of discussion online, is her short-standing career as a "high-level" competitor.
In this case, compared to Bastos, Kelly may not have as many accomplishments in BJJ on paper, but she is well-versed with the ONE Championship ruleset. That advantage is all she needs in order to extend her reign on August 2.
She told ONE:
"I just don't think I get enough credit. I'm also a huge underdog, which I expected because she wins alot of stuff at the lower divisions. I think I'm going to be overlooked, and I can't wait to prove people wrong."