In just one PFL season, [autotag]Dakota Ditcheva[/autotag] went from an exciting rising prospect to an established pound-for-pound-ranked fighter.
Entering her first PFL regular season, Manchester’s Ditcheva wasn’t a newcomer by any means, as she ended 2023 by winning the PFL Europe women’s flyweight championship. There was already plenty of buzz around her due to her growing highlight reel.
However, coming into the main PFL show stateside, there were bigger challenges ahead. Bellator champions past and present, former UFC title challengers, and PFL’s own crop of talent hungry for a $1 million tournament prize were all standing in Ditcheva’s way of proving herself as one of the best in the world.
Not only did Ditcheva pass every test put in front of her, she destroyed her opponents while arguably becoming the face of the promotion. That’s why Ditcheva is MMA Junkie’s 2024 Female Fighter of the Year.
Ditcheva’s season began on April 4 in the main card opener of 2024 PFL 1 against Lisa Mauldin. The 26-year-old striking specialist was a massive favorite according to oddsmakers, and she proved them correct. Like a surgeon, Ditcheva discected her opponent with accurate punches and kicks until Mauldin folded over from a body shot at 3:54 in the first round.
The victory earned six points in the women’s flyweight standings, only matched by former UFC title challenger Taila Santos, setting wheels in motion for what many expected to be the championship bout of the tournament.
Two months later at 2024 PFL 4, Ditcheva pulled away from the pack to solidify the No. 1 seed. Entering as another massive favorite against Chelsea Hackett, Ditcheva’s precise striking carried her to another first-round finish in the co-main event. Two fights down, two to go for a $1 million payday.
With the playoffs comes a higher level of competition. Ditcheva’s semifinal playoff bout was against a dangerous grappler in Jena Bishop, who was undefeated until a split decision loss to Santos in her second regular season bout. Oddsmakers acknowledged the step up, as Ditcheva was no longer an astronomical favorite, but it didn’t matter.
Ditcheva floored Bishop just under four minutes into the fight, and delivered an animated post-fight interview. “We don’t do no split decisions around here,” Ditcheva said as she took shots at Bishop and her team.
Despite buzzsawing through the PFL tournament, Ditcheva became aware of criticizm. “She’s just going to join the list of cans now,” Ditcheva said, mocking not only Bishop, but the notion from online chatter that all of her opponents were nobodies.
That would all change in the finals. PFL’s dream matchup came to fruition. It was Ditcheva vs. Santos for all the marbles at 2024 PFL Championship.
At UFC 275, Santos challenged for Valentina Shevchenko’s title and fought her to a split decision, but only earned one judge’s scorecard. Many believed Santos won that fight, but the loss would send her on a path that led to her UFC exit after a unanimous decision loss against Erin Blanchfield.
Santos then made the jump to PFL, instantly becoming one of the favorites to win the women’s flyweight tournament. It wasn’t a unanimous thought, however, but those who didn’t have her picked as the $1 million winner expected her floor to be in the final as a formidable test for Ditcheva.
The Brazilian held up her end of the bargain by submitting Ilara Joanne, winning a split decision over Bishop, and unanimously defeating former Bellator champion Liz Carmouche. She appeared as dangerous as ever. It was now time for Ditcheva to prove she could hang with a legit top flyweight.
Once again, Ditcheva proved the naysayers wrong.
The only feather Santos could put in her cap is that she was the only fighter in 2024 to take Ditcheva into the second round, but the fight would end there. The long front kicks and body shots mounted, eventually crumbling Santos. Ditcheva did it; she became PFL champion by stopping the former UFC title challenger impressively.
In the first USA TODAY SPORTS/MMA Junkie rankings of 2024, Ditcheva’s name was not present in the flyweight divison, nor in the women’s pound for pound lists. After her stellar 2024 run, Ditcheva vaulted into the rankings, claiming the No. 5 and No. 13 respectively as the year comes to a close.
The PFL season format is demanding. To win the $1 million prize, it requires winning four fights in eight months. Ditcheva made it look easy.
In a year where no current female UFC champion made more than one appearance (Zhang Weili, UFC 300; Shevchenko, UFC 306; Julianna Peña, UFC 307), Ditcheva’s activity combined with continuously destroying increased levels of competition while becoming the face of a major promotion is why she deserves the Female Fighter of the Year award.