Budding British star, undefeated MMA fighter, and PFL Europe champion Dakota Ditcheva continued her rapid ascent as she finished Lisa Mauldin in each fighter’s PFL regular season debut.
Opening the main card, Ditcheva was given a prominent spot in the first regular season card of the PFL 2024 season, earned with her five PFL wins, all by finish, and nine total finishes in ten pro wins, with no losses. She was given one of the lesser known fighters as her opponent for this first bout, 6-3 Lisa Mauldin, who got into PFL with a finish on their Challenger Series, and followed that up with another stoppage in her PFL debut last year. Still, she was no match for the violent onslaught of Dakota Ditcheva.
Dakota began the fight by stalking forward and using her Muay Thai style to quickly begin damaging Mauldin’s legs and head. Lisa pulled guard and went for a leg lock early, but Ditcheva took her back for a moment before the pair scrambled to the feet. Dakota pushed her foe against the fence but got taken down by a head and arm throw. She sprung right back up, however, and got back to striking, landing a left straight and a knee. Mauldin simply had nothing for the Brit on the feet. Suddenly Ditcheva dropped Lisa with a knee. The fight looked like it was over but Mauldin showed toughness to fight back up. However the very next shot, a brutal right hand to the body, put her back into the turtle position, and the ref stepped in as Dakota rained down ground strikes.
With that win Dakota became tied for first place in the division with the max points she could earn, a ‘quick six,’ as PFL calls it, for a first round finish in her first fight of the season. Her body work and combination striking was impressive, but she has still not been truly tested. There are other women in this division with top level experience, like UFC title challenger Taila Santos as well as former Bellator champions Julianna Velazquez and Liz Carmouche, who would test the twenty-five year old’s skill level like never before and show the world just what Ditcheva’s potential truly is.
Official Result: Dakota Ditcheva def. Lisa Mauldin by TKO, Round 1, 3:54
