American BJJ black belt Danielle Kelly is preparing for a unique challenge this Friday, November 18.

At ONE on Prime Video 4, she will take on four-time Sambo World Champion Mariia Molchanova in a highly anticipated submission grappling match, extending the budding rivalry between Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and sambo.

Unlike jiu-jitsu competition, sambo matches can be as short as four minutes and limit the amount of time grapplers can spend on the mat without attacking a submission. All of that forces the athletes to play an ultra-aggressive, submission-hunting game.

Danielle Kelly is working on her defense, harder than ever

Kelly is well aware of what the sambo stylist will bring to the table, and she has focused on her defense ahead of this 10-minute submission-only affair.

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“So I’ve been kind of keeping my training the same because I’m still studying and I’m still training for other potential grapplers,” she said. “But I have been working on a lot of defense for this one, too, so I can stay comfortable if I’m in a bad position with her.”

While she respects her opponent’s skill set, the Philadelphia-bred grappler finds a great deal of confidence in her own training and years of competing in BJJ at the highest level.

According to Kelly, Molchanova simply won’t be prepared for the complex web of techniques she’s honed since she was first introduced to the martial art as a child.

The BJJ black belt is confident in her knowledge

“I know she might be good at certain things,” the Silver Fox BJJ representative said. “But I think I’m confident and comfortable to the point where if she tries to give me an armbar or something, I’m going to be better than her and be 10 steps ahead.”

Based on what Kelly has seen, Molchanova grapples with plenty of aggression but lacks in the finer points of submission mechanics.

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It’s that lack of technique, she says, that will make the difference in this battle between BJJ and sambo.

“I think for her art, she’s probably just good at ripping stuff. But she doesn’t really have the mechanics – the finishing mechanics – to really know how to really work a submission,” Kelly added.

“Watching her try to do armbars, she just pulls on the arm. It looks tight, but, you know, if you go against someone that knows what they’re doing, they’re using different details on an armbar and finishing the right way.”