Dakota Ditcheva reflects on TKO win over Taila Santos at 2024 PFL Championship
Dakota Ditcheva made herself known this year.
After a successful run in the 2024 PFL tournament, Ditcheva took the women’s flyweight title – and the $1 million prize – at Friday’s 2024 PFL Championship in Saudi Arabia, and she did so by impressively stopping former UFC title challenger Taila Santos. This was by far the biggest test for Ditcheva (14-0), yet she was able to get through Santos (22-4) with ease.
“I’ve been telling you,” Ditcheva said in her in-cage post-fight interview. “I’ve been trying to tell you. Maybe (the haters will listen to me), I’m sure they’ll still be moaning about it, but I’ll just keep proving them wrong.”
At 26, Ditcheva feels unstoppable with such a big win under her belt. She didn’t confirm if she’ll now compete under PFL’s Super Fight series or continue in the season format.
“I don’t know, the world is mine,” Ditcheva said. “I’ll sit with PFL and see what we can come up with. I just beat the best girl that’s out there out of any division, so I don’t know, PFL and I will come up with something amazing.”
As far as the performance, Ditcheva expected to finish Santos. She was confident she was going to get the job done despite the discrepancy in experience.
“She’s a tough girl, but I knew what I was capable of,” Ditcheva said. “I’ve worked so hard. My team knew what I was capable of. Right from the beginning of the season, if I would’ve gotten her in the first round, I would’ve done the same thing. They’ve been talking, and she’s been saying, ‘She’s just a Barbie and a model.’ Well, a model just beat your ass in round two, so shut up.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for 2024 PFL Championship.