Dakota Ditcheva made a successful return at PFL New York just over a week ago, but the news isn’t all good.
In a video statement issued on her official Youtube channel, Ditcheva revealed some “breaking news” — mainly that she had broken both hands in the fight.
Ditcheva (16-0) had previously been sidelined for a year prior to the Kielholtz fight with exactly the same injury.
“I am injured again. I broke my hands in the fight,” Ditcheva announced during the 20-minute video clip, which also covered her performance in the bout, and fan reaction. “I could feel it from the second I started the second round. I didn’t tell my corner, I didn’t tell anybody, I didn’t show it this time. And I didn’t actually tell anybody until I got out of the cage. The only one I did tell actually was my cut man, Paul, he’s like my best mate and he looks after me, I did whisper that to him, I felt like I’d broken both of my hands.”
“That could possibly be why there was no interview after the fight,” she also noted. Much was made about Ditcheva, one of the faces of the PFL, not getting a post-fight interview in New York. Ditcheva isn’t 100% about that, but added that “I am back in splints until my surgeon has decided what the next steps are going forward, which will be in the next few days.”
“The good thing is, I have no new breaks. It’s just that, if I explain, the hand that wasn’t operated on originally that I broke at the end of last year, I was told that if I didn’t go ahead with the surgery at that time, there was a possibility that it would break again in my fight. And unfortunately, I took the risk in not doing the surgery because I was hoping that it would hold strong without intervening with that kind of thing. And it didn’t,” Ditcheva revealed. “So it’s no new injury, that is kind of the positive I’m taking from it.”
Ditcheva added that she’s “paying the price” for not getting the surgery when originally offered, and will now be out “a little bit.” There’s no clear timetable for her return, though it’s highly unlikely she fights again until partway through 2027. “I’m hopefully going to be back quicker than I was last time,” Ditcheva added.
Dakota Ditcheva was expected to face Liz Carmouche for the PFL’s vacant women’s flyweight title next, though that fight is now up in the air.
