‘I knew I was going to beat her’: Philly’s Danielle Kelly reflects on her ONE grappling world title

On Sept. 29, Danielle Kelly brought the ONE atomweight submission grappling championship to its new home in Philadelphia, beating Jessa Khan at ONE Fight Night 14 in Singapore.

Before their brawl, the promoters set up an interview with one of the announcers and the two fighters. Khan and her team discussed how they had multiple offers for matches on the table but decided to take on Kelly, whom Khan had beaten in 2021.

That was a mistake they’ll learn from.

“We took her very seriously,” said Kelly, now 21-7 in her professional career after winning the fight that was streamed on Amazon’s Prime Video. “She kind of did some similar stuff from the past match; she’s good at what she does. I think adjusting threw her off. I think I showed I was the more prepared fighter.”

» READ MORE: How Danielle Kelly’s Philadelphia roots helped mold her into a world-class fighter

Kelly comes across as timid, but her success as a fighter has instilled confidence. Even with perspective, she knows how good she is.

“I knew I was going to beat her,” she said. “I knew I had a good chance. Not in a cocky way. I was aggressive. I don’t think she was at my level.”

This time, she wasn’t.

Kelly had support back home, too. Suzie Pepe, her lifelong friend, called it. Pepe has watched Kelly develop as a fighter and as a person. Kelly’s ringside partner from a distance, Pepe knew that the 27-year-old was more prepared than she was the last time she faced Khan. Pepe was Kelly’s strongest supporter, even when many in Kelly’s circle didn’t fully believe in her.

“Truthfully, more people had doubt,” Kelly said. “People already expected [Khan] to win; you could feel that clouding over you. But [Pepe] always believed in me, and she kept saying she had a feeling.”

But in some ways, the doubt made sense. Growing up in the Philadelphia area, Kelly did not have access to the resources many of her fighting peers did. The pride Kelly takes in her hometown also comes with some obstacles.

“Being from Philly, you’re not known for traveling as much, especially for MMA and combat,” Kelly said. “Usually, you get boxing, but outside of that, there are very few notable names. There are very few good schools. [Khan] is in California and Hawaii, the gyms she’s from and the ones that are near her are world-class. She’s been traveling more from a younger age.”

But Khan’s advantage didn’t stop Kelly from coming out victorious, a win that’s extra impactful for her.

Now the world champion, she hopes her status as a grappler and professional athlete will continue to rise — not just in Philly, but everywhere.

“Beating someone like her definitely puts me on the map,” Kelly said. “Not that I wasn’t respected before; everyone has wins and losses. But I never had stuff handed to me, so something like this is really affirming.”

What’s next for Kelly? She likely won’t fight again until early 2024.

But until then, the champ is in the City of Brotherly Love.

“I guess that clears everything up,” Kelly said. “I’m the world champion now.”