The rise of Dakota Ditcheva (14-0 MMA, 9-0 PFL) over the past two-and-a-half years has been nothing short of sensational. The Manchester-born fighter made her debut inside the PFL smartcage in August of 2022 and has finished every single opponent the organization have placed in front of her.
"Dangerous" won all 3 of her fights in 2023 to win the PFL Europe flyweight tournament and pocketed the $100,000 prize that came with it.
A step up to the top tier followed in 2024 as she was added into the mix for the PFL global million dollar tournament. 3 1st-round stoppages earned her a place in the finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in November where she put UFC veteran Taila Santos away in the 2nd round thanks to a vicious bodyshot.
Ditcheva Discusses The 2025 Women's Flyweight Tournament
Having cemented her status as one of the best female fighters on the planet, Ditcheva says it's unlikely that she'll be a part of the roster for this year's flyweight tournament.
"I don't know who's entering the tournament apart from Taila Santos that they've announced", the 26-year-old told Fight Bananas Official this week, "so I don't know who they're gonna put in. I mean, they ran the European flyweights last year, the tournament again without me in it.
"The girl that won (Paulina Wiśniewska) that was really good but she's still very young. I have heard (that) I don't think she wants to step up too quick yet, so I don't know whether she'll be coming up or not, but it's really interesting to see who they're going to put in that tournament. I don't think I'm going to be in it; it's not 100% set that I'm not, but at the moment, it's looking like I'm not in it".
While Ditcheva isn't sure what happens next for her, she hasn't ruled out the idea of a rematch against Taila Santos.
"I'm still waiting to find out kind of what my direction is this year, but yeah, we'll see" she said. "I think Santos probably will be a number one contender and then maybe they'll set up the rematch at the end of the year. I don't know if she wins (the tournament), so it could work out well anyway; but we'll see what happens".
