‘There’s No Denying’ Carmouche Is ‘Top Girl’ … But ‘Don’t Underestimate’ Ditcheva

“This has probably got to be one of the most exciting tournaments they’ve done.”

The 2024 Professional Fighters League (PFL) season has all the potential to be the best one yet.

A Bellator roster invasion is upon each division after PFL absorbed the longstanding promotion in late 2023. Each divisional tournament to kick off 2024 is littered with fresh new faces and match ups across the board.

Despite the large increase in overall depth, PFL is maintaining the same number of seasons per division as it always has with six. One of those belongs to the women, who won’t be Featherweights or Lightweights as seen in past years. In 2024, the Flyweights get the spotlight and the talent pool looks to create plenty of intriguing bouts whether that includes PFL Europe star and champion, Dakota Ditcheva, or reigning Bellator titleholder, Liz Carmouche. Ditcheva, 25, will have an edge with the PFL format. However, she knows she no longer has the biggest target on her back like she did last year in the European iteration.

“This has probably got to be one of the most exciting tournaments they’ve done, I feel like,” Ditcheva told MMA Mania. “The level of girls that are in it and the names that are in it. Obviously, Liz has been around for years. The people she’s fought, she holds the Bellator belt. [Taila] Santos coming over as well and her level. She’s right at the top where she’s been.

“To see girls like that coming in now, it’s just crazy,” she continued. “There’s a few young people like me that are gonna be coming up so it’ll be interesting to see how it plays out but also how the girls deal with the tournament format. A lot of the fighters have kind of fought once a year, twice a year. They’re not as regular so it’ll be interesting who to see can carry on throughout the whole tournament and who ends up in the final … with me (laughs).”

Carmouche, 40, has been one of the division’s best globally since she dropped from Bantamweight while still a part of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in December 2017. Meanwhile, one-time UFC title challenger, Santos, makes for a thrilling addition to PFL’s roster after establishing herself as a consensus Top 5 fighter worldwide.

Between Ditcheva, Carmouche, and Santos, they’ll all be tasked with different opponents to kick off their 2024 campaigns. A finisher through and through with her flawless 10-0 record (8 knockouts, 1 submission), the “Dangerous” Brit hopes to blaze through Lisa Mauldin at PFL San Antonio on April 4, 2024. After that, she’ll aim to take out Carmouche and or Santos en route to another PFL championship.

“Yeah, her level of experience, who she’s fought, she is the top girl at the moment, for sure,” Ditcheva said of Carmouche. “Her and Santos, I would say are the top two. There’s no denying that. I don’t think I’m far behind them as well. Don’t underestimate what I’m going to bring. I think they’re definitely the top two that we should all look out for.”

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