After smashing her way through Taila Santos at the PFL World Championship in Riyadh, Dakota Ditcheva can’t help but wonder what’s left for her to accomplish in 2025.
‘Dangerous’ ran the table during this year’s inaugural PFL women’s flyweight tournament, earning four straight finishes, including a second-round TKO against former UFC title challenger Taila Santos at the promotion’s final event of the year in Saudi Arabia.
DAKOTA DITCHEVA STOPS TAILA SANTOS IN ROUND TWO
Ditcheva stays undefeated and becomes the new PFL women's flyweight champion
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Speaking with talkSPORT following her million-dollar victory, Ditcheva expressed some concern over potentially competing in next year’s tournament considering she’s already dispatched her toughest test.
“I don’t know, we haven’t spoken about it too much with PFL,” Ditcheva said when asked about her future. “I think it’s difficult because for me, I just beat the top girl that is out there. So, if you put me back in the tournament, I’m gonna get more stick for fighting the same girls and people that are lower level.
“So, does it make sense to do that with someone that’s like, I feel like I bring in a lot of attention and stuff like that, so I feel maybe a super fight might suit a little bit better, but then, is anyone going to watch the season without me in it? I don’t know. We’ll see what happens” (h/t MMA Mania).
Dakota Ditcheva could face the same struggle that Kayla Harrison did in the PFL
If the story sounds familiar, that’s probably because two-time PFL champion Kayla Harrison faced a similar struggle during her time with the organization. Harrison ran roughshod over much of the competition, leading many to criticize her for kicking around a bunch of cans rather than taking on the toughest fighters available.
Hopefully, they will refrain from subjecting Ditcheva to a similar fate by signing some fresh talent to the flyweight pool ahead of next year’s tournament because, as it stands, there’s not much for Ditcheva or her fans to be excited about in 2025.
