Philly’s Danielle Kelly will defend her grappling world title against Mayssa Bastos at ONE Fight Night 24

Underestimate Danielle Kelly if you dare.

Her track record suggests you won’t like the outcome.

The 28-year-old Northeast Philadelphia native has gone from bullied to Brazilian jiu-jitsu champion.

The Inquirer has learned that Kelly’s first title defense will come at ONE Fight Night 24 and stream live Aug. 2 on Amazon’s Prime Video when she faces Mayssa Bastos for the atomweight submission grappling championship at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

“I think with this match I’ll probably be taken more seriously since I made an example of my last opponent,” Kelly said in a phone interview.

In September, the 5-foot-4, 115-pounder beat IBJJF World Champion Jessa Khan during ONE’s first all-women’s headlining card.

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

Khan had beaten Kelly in 2021.

“I think she felt like I was going to be hesitant,” Kelly said. “When you know someone has more accomplishments, more belts, more titles than you, a lot of people get starstruck. … I used to be really scared of that stuff … but basically I just knew I could beat her. I don’t think titles mean much. I think I can win, too. I’ve definitely been doubted a lot, so that’s my motivation.”

After being bullied as a child, losing both of her parents to long-term illnesses as a young adult, and nearly leaving jiu-jitsu entirely, Kelly still loves proving people wrong.

“This is basically what I do for a job, and I’m pretty confident,” she said. “It’s not easy, but if you go in knowing you can do [something], it kind of just comes to you, especially with the right people in your corner.”

Kelly was bullied while growing up near Fox Chase and started karate at 9 years old. The bullying got worse, though, when her family moved to Abington, where she was the scrawny new kid at a gargantuan middle school.

“It wasn’t a great experience,” Kelly said. “But I think it kind of helped me, especially because most of the people you find in jiu-jitsu have similar stories …”

At Lower Moreland High School, she also wrestled and played softball, but jiu-jitsu is what stuck.

“I think it helped me with my confidence over time,” she said, “especially when I was getting picked on and I knew how to defend myself.”

In some ways, her coach, Enrique Galarza, who is from Ecuador, can relate.

Galarza, 30, joined the sport at his father’s behest when he was 15.

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

“I was the youngest, the lightest, and the weakest one,” Galarza said by phone. “I remember it like it was yesterday.”

Though he endured a brutal, three-month introduction to the sport, Galarza eventually found his footing.

“I survived it, and now I’ve dedicated my life to it,” he said.

He has coached Kelly for more than seven years, but scheduling conflicts meant he couldn’t be as hands-on during her two previous matches.

“Danielle didn’t fight like herself,” he said of the first match against Khan. “For the second match, having a chip on her shoulder, she fought more like herself. When she won, it didn’t surprise me at all.”

Later, he added: “I’m pretty sure people shouldn’t underestimate her by now.

Galarza wouldn’t reveal any secrets regarding Kelly’s strategy ahead of her title defense, but said confidence is where she’s grown the most.

Asked if he felt a special connection given their rough beginnings in the sport, Galarza chuckled.

“Of course,” he said. “We are teammates.”

In contrast, Kelly felt alone years earlier.

She was around 20 when her father, Dennis, whom she has called “her biggest supporter” died after a long illness. Her mother, Patricia, also later died.

“For a few months I was basically living with friends,” she said, “because I only had $500 in my bank account and I didn’t really have family support at the time, which was sad.”

» READ MORE: This Conestoga senior is heading off to New Zealand. First, she’ll lead her crew to the national championships.

She is much closer with her mother’s family now, but contemplated quitting during the turmoil.

“I think when everything happened, there was a point I wanted to quit because I was like, ‘How am I going to support myself?’” she said. “But I was pretty blessed to be around people who helped me get on my feet, and here I am.”

Now, she has nearly 300,000 followers on Instagram and makes a living in the sport some said was a dead end.

“I use that as a motivation, too, because there have been people who have said I either wouldn’t make it or that there’s nothing [in jiu-jitsu] for me. … But nowadays it’s a widespread sport with a lot of promotions and everyone can make a living off it now, especially women,” she said,

That also means she has opened eyes and doors so that young girls can follow her footsteps. Kelly says she often gets notes from parents whose daughters and sons she has influenced into the sport.

Having all eyes on her, she added, encourages her to make entertaining matches with constant motion and exciting moves. Still, she must also balance the desire to entertain with the need to win.

After all, sticking it to doubters fuels her fire.

“I just love the feeling of being doubted and that people either want me to win or lose and people just watching me,” she said. “I’ll have a little bit of the nerves as I’m walking down, but then once I’m in the cage, it’s like, ‘Yeah, let’s do this.’”