One of the victors on the PFL’s Battle of the Giants: Francis Ngannou vs. Renan Ferreira card has had their win overturned after failing a drug test. The Professional Fighters League staged its latest pay-per-view event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia this past October. It marked a big night for the promotion, with heavyweight star Francis […]
One of the victors on the PFL’s Battle of the Giants: Francis Ngannou vs. Renan Ferreira card has had their win overturned after failing a drug test.
They emerged victorious in the headline spots, defeating Renan Ferreira and Larissa Pacheco, respectively. A number of other fighters made the most of their position on the major lineup, including Johnny Eblen, Zafar Mohsen, and Paul Hughes on the main card.
Disaster has struck for one of those names, however.
MMA Junkie reported this week that Mohsen’s unanimous decision victory over Husein Kadimagomaev has been overturned to a no contest.
The information came through Mohegan Tribe Department of Athletic Regulation chief Mike Mazzulli, who confirmed that a drug test submitted by Mohsen on fight night was flagged as positive in the aftermath.
‘Dangerous’ Dakota Ditcheva just won the PFL world title by stunning knockout, stopping Taila Santos in the second round…
‘Dangerous’ Dakota Ditcheva just won the PFL world title by stunning knockout, stopping Taila Santos in the second round in a dominant performance. Because of Valentina Shevchenko, Ditcheva thought Brazil’s Santos was going to bring more.
Dakota Ditcheva Knocks out Taila Santos
Three knockouts in a row are all the Bulgarian-Russian needed to capture a whopping $1,000,000 in the PFL capturing a world title for the 2024 season. In the finals, Dakota Ditcheva faced veteran athlete Taila Santos who got folded over in the second round.
Brazil’s Taila Santos has defeated notable athletes such as Liz Carmouche, and Joanne Wood, among others. Valentina Shevchenko is a multi-time UFC champion with tons of title defenses to her name. In their five-round war with the UFC crown on the line, Santos nearly took the throne from ‘Bullet’ Shevchenko. Because of that match, Ditcheva thought Santos was going to have more.
Speaking in a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, Ditcheva explained:
“I expected Taila Santos to bring a bit more because of her fight with Valentina Shevchenko. But I knew I’d get the stoppage in there.
“She’s never been stopped. Shevchenko didn’t stop her. People thought [Santos] beat [Shevchenko]… Erin Blanchfield went 5 rounds with her. I just got in there and made it look like another on the list.”
Ditcheva added that she has loads of respect for the skills and strength of Santos as well. The undefeated Ditcheva comes from a Muay Thai and Kickboxing background which was largely taught to her by her moth who was a champion in these striking sports. After this win, she is next looking to compete in the PFL in February.
‘Dangerous’ Dakota Ditcheva just won the PFL world title by stunning knockout, stopping Taila Santos in the second round…
‘Dangerous’ Dakota Ditcheva just won the PFL world title by stunning knockout, stopping Taila Santos in the second round in a dominant performance. Because of Valentina Shevchenko, Ditcheva thought Brazil’s Santos was going to bring more.
Dakota Ditcheva Knocks out Taila Santos
Three knockouts in a row are all the Bulgarian-Russian needed to capture a whopping $1,000,000 in the PFL capturing a world title for the 2024 season. In the finals, Dakota Ditcheva faced veteran athlete Taila Santos who got folded over in the second round.
Brazil’s Taila Santos has defeated notable athletes such as Liz Carmouche, and Joanne Wood, among others. Valentina Shevchenko is a multi-time UFC champion with tons of title defenses to her name. In their five-round war with the UFC crown on the line, Santos nearly took the throne from ‘Bullet’ Shevchenko. Because of that match, Ditcheva thought Santos was going to have more.
Speaking in a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, Ditcheva explained:
“I expected Taila Santos to bring a bit more because of her fight with Valentina Shevchenko. But I knew I’d get the stoppage in there.
“She’s never been stopped. Shevchenko didn’t stop her. People thought [Santos] beat [Shevchenko]… Erin Blanchfield went 5 rounds with her. I just got in there and made it look like another on the list.”
Ditcheva added that she has loads of respect for the skills and strength of Santos as well. The undefeated Ditcheva comes from a Muay Thai and Kickboxing background which was largely taught to her by her moth who was a champion in these striking sports. After this win, she is next looking to compete in the PFL in February.
According to the PFL, the only side stopping a heavyweight megafight between Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones is the UFC. Talk of Ngannou and Jones colliding has existed ever since the former rose to the mountaintop in the UFC with a knockout of Stipe Miocic. With “Bones” having expressed his intention to move up in […]
According to the PFL, the only side stopping a heavyweight megafight between Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones is the UFC.
Talk of Ngannou and Jones colliding has existed ever since the former rose to the mountaintop in the UFC with a knockout of Stipe Miocic. With “Bones” having expressed his intention to move up in pursuit of two-division glory, “The Predator” laid down the gauntlet.
Jones, however, took a further two years to make the transition to heavyweight, and by the time he was ready to return, Ngannou had departed the organization following a lengthy contractual dispute.
Ngannou’s new employer, for one, appears keen to find out.
Be it founder Donn Davis or CEO Peter Murray, the PFL higher-ups have repeatedly expressed a willingness to co-promote a superfight between Ngannou and Jones with the UFC.
During an interview with Adam Catterall for talkSPORT MMA while in Riyadh for last week’s 2024 PFL World Championship, Murray reiterated that. He even suggested his promotion’s “partners” in Saudi Arabia are keen for the fight to come together.
“Yeah, I mean, we’re supportive of it,” Murray said. “I mean, the fighters want the fight. Jon Jones wants the fight, Francis wants the fight, we want the fight, our partners here in Saudi want the fight. And so, you know, it comes down to, does the UFC want to step up to it or not? Period.”
The PFL became the latest sporting entity to sign a deal with Saudi Arabia in 2023, selling a minority ownership stake to SRJ Sports Investments. The deal marked the first for the fund, which was launched by the PIF (Public Investment Fund). It was reported that the agreement was for investment in excess of $100 million into the PFL.
This year, meanwhile, saw the UFC head to the Middle Eastern nation for the first time. In addition to touching down in Saudi Arabia, Riyadh Season also became the first title partner of a UFC event when it sponsored the Sphere show this past September.
With that connection in mind, perhaps a co-promoted clash between Ngannou and Jones isn’t quite as impossible as it seemed 12 months ago.
Blessings make haters uncomfortable, but they can't change it. There's only one fight, the right fight that will multiply your blessings.#NgannouVSJoneshttps://t.co/7HhNDM4OD6
After capturing the PFL’s inaugural women’s flyweight title as part of the global roster last week, Dakota Ditcheva isn’t sure about shooting for back-to-back belts in 2025. Ditcheva continued to prove that her high confidence is more than well placed this past weekend, when she figured in perhaps the most highly anticipated matchup at the […]
After capturing the PFL’s inaugural women’s flyweight title as part of the global roster last week, Dakota Ditcheva isn’t sure about shooting for back-to-back belts in 2025.
Ditcheva continued to prove that her high confidence is more than well placed this past weekend, when she figured in perhaps the most highly anticipated matchup at the 2024 PFL World Championship.
Following a title win as part of the promotional’s regional PFL Europe expansion last year, “Dangerous” got her pursuit of global glory off to a strong start with first-round knockouts of Lisa Mauldin and Chelsea Hackett in the regular season.
And after sending Jena Bishop to the same fate in the semifinal, Ditcheva booked a date with her toughest opponent to date, a former UFC title challenger in Taila Santos whom many believe did enough to deserve a victory over Valentina Shevchenko back in 2022.
Having had plenty doubt her potential based on a perceived lack of legitimate competition, Ditcheva proved her detractors wrong and then some. She’s now being hailed as among the best 125-pound fighters in the world.
Her next step, though, is unclear.
During an interview with Adam Catterall for talkSPORT MMA, Ditcheva assessed what could await her in 2025, sharing the same sentiment as many in the fanbase that another stint in the PFL’s season format may not make sense for her.
Having beaten the woman widely seen as the division’s best in Santos, Ditcheva appears hesitant to shoot for consecutive titles and is instead pondering a push for super fights in 2025.
“I don’t know, we haven’t spoke about it too much with PFL,” Ditcheva said. “I think it’s difficult because for me, I just beat the top girl that there 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 gonna watch the season without me in it? I don’t know,” Ditcheva continued. “We’ll see what happens.”
Ditcheva’s situation has proven difficult for fighters in the past. Two-time PFL title winner Kayla Harrison was notably left sidelined for much of 2023 after choosing against competing in the promotion’s first women’s featherweight season.
“Dangerous” will be hoping to avoid any such issues next year. Given her rising stardom in the PFL, it stands to reason that the higher-ups will want her back in the SmartCage as soon as possible.
UFC Lightweight Champion Islam Makhachev watched on as another teammate claimed 155-pound title glory in a major promotion. Gadzi Rabadanov, a former Eagle FC competitor and Bellator contender, was among those competing with gold on the line at the 2024 PFL World Championship last Friday, where both PFL Global and inaugural PFL MENA belts were […]
UFC Lightweight Champion Islam Makhachev watched on as another teammate claimed 155-pound title glory in a major promotion.
Gadzi Rabadanov, a former Eagle FC competitor and Bellator contender, was among those competing with gold on the line at the 2024 PFL World Championship last Friday, where both PFL Global and inaugural PFL MENA belts were dished out.
The Dagestani figured on the main card opposite Brent Primus, whom he earned the right to face in the lightweight final by outpointing Solomon Renfro and Elvin Espinoza in the regular season before knocking out Michael Dufort in the semifinal.
With the result, the Makhachkala native won gold in a major promotion, took home $1 million in prize money, and marked the latest from Khabib Nurmagomedov’s famed team to earn champion status.
That was no doubt unsurprising to those who’ve trained with him, one being Makhachev. The UFC’s lightweight kingpin has long touted Rabadanov for success, and he praised his teammate’s victory in a social media post this past weekend.
“Congratulations brother @gadzhi_rabadanov. I think in this Grand Prix you’re just beginning to reach your potential… And now a well-deserved rest.”
Rabadanov has joined UFC’s Makhachev and Bellator standout Usman Nurmagomedov as the three lightweight titleholders in the major US-based organizations.
In the past, Nurmagomedov has been tipped by his team to succeed Makhachev as the 155-pound king on MMA’s biggest stage. But with Rabadanov earning global praise for his 10th straight win, perhaps he, too, will pursue success in the Octagon down the line.
‘Dangerous’ Dakota Ditcheva just won the PFL world title by stunning knockout, stopping Taila Santos in the second round…
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(@dakotaad_)