Dakota Ditcheva won $1 million by defeating Taila Santos in the PFL finals / PFL Reproduction
Those who love what they do in their profession always want to have work. And in the world of combat sports it is no different. Going long periods without fighting, whether due to any setback, ends up becoming a lonely and sad journey for the athlete.
This is what is happening to a fighter who was a big revelation for the PFL last year. The undefeated Dakota Ditcheva has won all 14 of her career fights and will win the organization's women's flyweight belt (up to 2024 kg) in 56,7. Despite all this hype, the British fighter does not even know when she will return to the PFL decagon.
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“I’m not hearing much. Obviously, the (2025) tournament has just started for the girls, which makes me very happy for everyone who’s in it – more or less. I’d like to be in it too. I’m happy to see the girls building the division and getting it started. For me, I’m not sure what’s going on. The only thing I’ve heard is that the winner of that tournament can fight me at the end of the year, which is good, but it leaves me a long time without fighting. Hopefully, me and the PFL can work something out before then and get me back in front of the fans,” Ditcheva said in an interview with the North American portal. 'MMA Junkies' this Thursday (17).
This whole situation of seeing other athletes preparing has caused Dakota a feeling of frustration.
“I’m devastated that I haven’t achieved anything yet. I’m like, ‘Get me something.’ I understand it’s tough for the PFL. They’ve put all the girls in the tournament. Now they need to find someone who can give me good competition. They can’t give me someone who’s just signed with the PFL and doesn’t have a lot of experience. It doesn’t make a lot of sense. I just beat (Taila) Santos. Very easily. It’s definitely testing me. That’s probably why I came back home, because at the beginning I was here in Florida training and nothing happened. Seeing everyone training for this tournament was really disheartening for me. I came home, got a little bit of a boost and now I’m back, ready to get back in the gym and hopefully something happens,” added the Brit.
Paraphrasing the famous saying 'nothing is so bad that it can't get worse', Ditcheva also raised another important point. If any opponent is not in a position to face her at the end of 2025, the limbo could last even longer for the champion.
Taila Santos lost to Dakota Ditcheva in the PFL / Reproduction X
“They say, ‘Oh, we’ll put you in at the end of the year.’ What if the champion doesn’t come out of the fight unscathed? What if he’s injured? Someone who’s fought three times, wants to fight me at the end of the year? They might say, ‘Sorry, I’m injured or I don’t want to fight this year, but I’ll do it in January.’ That means a whole year off for me. It’s a test, for sure, but something will happen,” he said.
Ditcheva became champion on November 29 last year. after technical knockout in the second round on Taila Santos, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, winning the prize of US$ 1 million (around R$ 5.855.300). The 26-year-old fighter says she is looking forward to experiencing more intense moments in the PFL.
“The prize was amazing, the belt is amazing, but for me, I want to fight. I’ve always been a very active fighter, so this now, especially without having anything scheduled, is a mental challenge. I really need to believe in the process and let everything happen as it should,” she concluded.
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