The undefeated English flyweight is 15-0, but after winning the PFL Europe tournament in 2023 and PFL Global season in 2024, she has fought just once, picking up a victory over Bellator alum Sumiko Inaba last year.

Ahead of this past weekend’s PFL San Diego, a card she noted had “two really good fights for the flyweight division,” Ditcheva spoke with Cageside Press about her return.

“I used to watch Denise when she used to fight in GLORY, when she used to fight in Bellator,” noted Ditcheva, who jumped to MMA in 2021 after competing in Muay Thai for years. “So I’ve watched her for a long time, I really like her striking style.”

“It’s just crazy that we’re now facing each other, which is really strange for me. But I’m excited. She’s an aggressive fighter, really nice striking style but we’ll see what happens on the night.”

After spending much of the past 12 months dealing with injury — the fight with Kielholtz was initially announced for February — Ditcheva also noted that the division has been far from stagnant.

“I’ve been upset that I’ve been out for so long, but the division’s kept moving, and now I’ve come back and everyone’s ready,” she told us. “They’re all calling me out.”

With Liz Carmouche picking up a victory on Saturday in San Diego, a Dakota Ditcheva win next month feels like it could set up a title fight between to two later in the year. Former foe Jena Bishop also picked up her second victory of 2026, submitting Ariane Lipski da Silva, with more success potentially putting a rematch in play.

Watch our full interview with PFL New York’s Dakota Ditcheva above.

The post Dakota Ditcheva on Time Away: “The Division’s Kept Moving” appeared first on Cageside Press.

Eblen was a big part of Sean Strickland’s camp and corner for his fight with Khamzat Chimaev, and got considerable kudos for the work he put in there, including from the two-time UFC middleweight champion himself.

Speaking with Cageside Press as the PFL’s Summer Series kicked off, the former Bellator MMA middleweight champion told us that being part of Strickland’s big night “was just a lot of fun. I felt like I was a part of a sports history moment, especially him being such a big underdog, and Chimaev, everybody kind of counting Sean out. Just being a part of that camp, being a part of that corner and being a part of that night, it was just truly awesome. You don’t get very many nights like that, where you get to experience that.”

Eblen (17-1) was supposed to be fighting Costello van Steenis at the Moody Center in Austin on July 18, only for the current PFL middleweight champ to pull out. Now, he rematches another former foe, Impa Kasanganay. Yet while he wants the belt again, he’s not hyper-focused on van Steenis.

“I just take each and every fight one by one. I know I want to get the belt back, and I want to get that rematch with Costello, but if it doesn’t ever happen, it doesn’t ever happen. I don’t care. At the end of the day I’m a fighter, and I just want to fight want to make money. That’s all I really care about. And also I’m a martial artist, I just want to get better at my craft.”

“I think it’s the best for the company and best for a storyline; for us to have a rematch and for it to happen in this next fight, it would have been huge,” continued Eblen. “Because that’s the rematch everyone’s looking for, it’s the biggest fight you can make outside of the UFC, or the biggest fight you can make in the PFL. But it is what it is. He wanted to push it, so now I’m fighting Impa, and I think that’s the next biggest fight you can make.”

Eblen earned a split decision victory in his first fight against Kasanganay a couple of years back, part of the PFL vs. Bellator head-to-head event. And he sees a path to victory again.

“I’ve just got to fight smart, don’t get hit with his right hand, and mix it up. That’s all I need to do.” Eblen foresees victory regardless of whether the finish comes or not, but believes he can end Kasanganay’s night early. “When I see the finish, I’ll take it.”

Watch our full interview with PFL Austin headliner Johnny Eblen above.

The post PFL Austin: Johnny Eblen Wants Belt, Doesn’t Care About Van Steenis Rematch appeared first on Cageside Press.

Cyborg (29-2, 1NC) is looking for her thirtieth win in professional MMA when she takes on former UFC contender Vieira in the main event on August 22 in Tampa, Florida. That’s a nice round number, and something that has yet to be achieved by a female fighter in a major promotion (Amanda Nunes has 23 wins, Jessica Andrade 26).

Discussing the situation she finds herself in with media outlets including Cageside Press as the PFL kicked off its Summer Series this past week, Cyborg noted that in reality the bout is the last she’s contractually obligated for.

“It is my last fight, last fight on my contract, but of course after my fight I want to sit down with my family, my team. We have a lot of plans outside MMA life, but I’m very excited, just focused on doing my best this next fight.”

Of course, there are other possibilities, including boxing, and Netflix’s MVP MMA. Names like Holly Holm and Miesha Tate were suggested, with Cyborg telling Cageside Press that boxing is still very much in play.

“I can tell you, I’m gonna be making after, some boxing fights. I still have a dream, fight for the WBC belt and I’ve been training,” she stated. “I just got my WIBA belt in boxing. But I wanna just think about Ketlen next. I want to see how I feel, see how camp is going, how my body feels.”

MMA may still be in the cards as well. It seems to all come down to opportunities, and how her body feels. On that front, Cyborg noted that health-wise, she’s had a fortuitous run. “I love what I do, and I’m doing this for so long, but I’m really very blessed about not having any bad injuries the whole career. But I really just want to feel this fight, how it’s going to be and then that’s it.”

The 40-year old Brazilian, who now calls California home, added that she feels “blessed to have the opportunity to fight one more time.” And over the past five years or so, she’s been treating every fight like it could be her last. “I always think, me and my team, ‘Cris, enjoy every single moment, because there’s gonna be a time you’re not going to have more. So enjoy being in the ring, enjoy training, it could be a the last.’ So every fight [for] five years, I say ‘it could be the last, it could be the last.’ That has me very excited for this fight. Happy.”

Watch Cris Cyborg’s full media appearance ahead of PFL Tampa above.

The post Cris Cyborg Leaving the Door Open for More Past PFL Tampa appeared first on Cageside Press.

To the point of being asked whether Fiziev could finish him early on.

The Mexican lightweight took it all in stride. “I dont believe so. I do not believe so,” stated Torres (17-3). Shortly thereafter, he was essentially asked the same question a second time, about Fiziev beating his opponents in the first round, and whether it was possible that Torres himself would go down in round one.

Torres turned the question around, suggesting he could win in the opening frame and saying “yes, I think it’s possible. I’m always prepared to fight, and I’m prepoared to fight for five rounds, but it’s part of my strategy to win in the first round.”

Torres has won his last two fights, and is 5-1 overall in the UFC, helping him land his first main event in the promotion. Fiziev’s last win came at home in Baku, so his confidence is no doubt high coming back home. Manuel Torres, however, feels Fiziev hasn’t seen the entirety of his skillset.

“Truthfully I think that rafael fiziev has not seen my game, really, because I finish my fights in the first couple of minutes. But I’m coming in with my game and my pace, just gonna impose myself on the way to a win.”

Torres would later speak on the lightweight division overall, which just saw Justin Gaethje claim gold from Ilia Topuria. “It is the most dangerous division. It’s a division where it’s the most talented, definitely the most exciting division in the sport. And I think things are going to flow, and they’re going to flow up until the time that I have a shot at the title.”

Watch the full UFC Baku media day appearance by Manuel Torres above.

The post UFC Vegas 119: Manuel Torres Responds to First-Round KO Claims appeared first on Cageside Press.

Set for the co-main event of UFC Baku on Saturday, Shara Magomedov (16-1) will be fighting for the first time in a year. And in response to Pereira’s comments at the event’s media day, he explained that “He’s correct. I’m a warrior, I was born to be a warrior, that’s the way I was raised. And he is a dancer, an acrobat, an actor, and I’m here to fight. I’m here to show great fights.”

Pereira is known for his acrobatic style, and the Russian is hoping his opponent brings his A-game.

“I want him to be very confident in himself, I want him to be sure of himself, I want to see the best version of him possible. And all I want to do is come out there and get in a fight with him,” stated Magomedov. “I want to make sure that we have a great fight, and just I want to make sure that he’s able to show himself, because I’m willing to come out there and show my best.”

The 32-year old from Dagestan, Russia has just one blemish on his pro record. That’s a decision loss to Michael “Venom” Page back in February of 2025. It apparently still doesn’t sit right with Shara Bullet, who is gunning for a rematch. Though in the case of the self-styled “pirate,” those guns might be cannons.

“I think that it’s at least a step in the right direction when it comes to the rematch with Michael ‘Venom’ Page,” he said of the fight with Pereira. “I brought my ship here to this harbour to make sure to take all of the gold I can find. The pirate is here, the pirate will do whatever he has to do to get a rematch against Michael ‘Venom’ Page anywhere in the world, at any time.”

Watch the full UFC Baku media day appearance by Shara Bullet above.

The post UFC Vegas 119: Shara Bullet Calls Pereira “Dancer,” “Acrobat” appeared first on Cageside Press.

This time out, the #2-ranked McKee (24-2) has been paired up with Salamat Isbulaev, an undefeated, 10-0 featherweight who already has a victory over Jesus Pinedo in the PFL.

There was a point when McKee was on the market, his services up for grabs with the UFC and others in play. Ultimately, he opted to re-sign with the PFL, who scooped up his old home, Bellator MMA, a few years back. In a recent interview, McKee told Cageside Press that “PFL’s got a thick roster as well. They’ve got a lot of up-and-comers like Isbulaev himself. I’m looking forward to doing what I do best, which is kick ass and take names.”

In Isbulaev, McKee sees a skilled wrestler, but questioned the Russian-Kazakh’s striking. “I think he’s got good wrestling, pretty good jiu-jitsu from what I’ve seen,” allowed McKee. “Little sus on the feet, I think he blends his wrestling with his striking. I saw that with Pineda, they had what, three minutes before he even engaged? This ain’t gonna be a fight where we’re taking three minutes to engage.”

“It’s execute, execute, execute all the way. So I’m going to get in there and I’m going to get on him, and we’ll see how things go.”

PFL CEO John Martin has suggested that Saturday’s PFL San Diego main event between AJ McKee and Salamat Isbulaev could very well be a title eliminator. While McKee isn’t looking past his opponent, it’s clear the title is on his mind. Right now, the belt is vacant, and only Timur Khizriev sits ahead of McKee himself.

“I don’t like to look ahead, but at the end of the day, I genuinely don’t care who it is, when it is, where it is. I’m just looking forward to becoming world champion again, and holding that world title around my waist.”

Watch our full interview with PFL San Diego headliner AJ McKee above.

The post PFL San Diego: AJ McKee Feels Isbulaev “A Little Sus on the Feet” appeared first on Cageside Press.

“Demolidor” addressed the match-up during this week’s UFC Baku media day, saying that “I’ve faced tough competition, very tough competition and I don’t think because of the styles that this is going to be the hardest fight. And I will say, fighting the way I fight, doing the backflips and fighting in my style is way more difficult than just going out there and fighting.”

Pereira (32-14, 2NC) is unquestionably an unorthodox fighter who hit the radar of many fight fans when he pulled off a pro wrestling-style “moonsault” in a bout prior to his UFC run. Asked about Shara Bullet’s own unorthodox style, Pereira didn’t agree that he even had one.

“I don’t think he’s that different from other fighters. I don’t see him as a different or unorthodox type of fighter,” Pereira stated. “He does not do the things that I do, whether it’s a back flip or types of strikes you’ve never seen before. I think when he’s fighting, he’s a very conventional fighter.”

Opponent Magomedov hasn’t fought in a while, but Pereira noted that the inactivity may not matter in the end.

“I don’t think it plays a part, because if he actually had a good camp to face me, we’ll all be prepared to put on a great show. So it doesn’t matter that he hasn’t fought in a while.”

Pereira did reveal that he has some bad blood with Shara Bullet, however, after the latter made negative comments about the Brazilian helping with flood relief at home. “He made comments out of nowhere about the fact that I was helping people, and took the opportunity to get clout out of that. So I don’t really give a damn what he says, he doesn’t look to be a good person.”

“It makes me even more motivated to go out there and beat him up,” Pereira finished.

Watch the full UFC Baku media day appearance by Michel Pereira above.

The post UFC Baku’s Michel Pereira Calls Shara Bullet “Conventional” Fighter appeared first on Cageside Press.

“The past is the past, whatever,” Bably told Cageside Press ahead of his return, and light heavyweight debut, against Rob Wilkinson at PFL San Diego this weekend.

Yet still, it kept him awake at night. And the loss motivated Bably to make a move. “I searched up, ‘what was Mike Tyson’s prime weight?’ and it said ‘215 to 225.’ And I thought, ‘you know what, if I got onto a good nutrition, got my weight down, I could 100% be the reincarnation of that.'”

A move to light heavyweight, 205lbs, was in the cards. Straight after winning the PFL Africa tournament at heavyweight last December, Bably decided to pull the trigger. “And here we are.”

Now just days out from making his 205lb debut, Bably stated that in terms of making the move down in weight, “nothing’s changed at all, but not eating as many biscuits as I was as a heavyweight. I had to get off the fizzy drinks.”

The weight cut is something that he now recognizes in a way many fighters have put it over the years: the fight before the fight.

“What I’ve understood now, dropping weight, is it gives you a different type of focus, because you have to make the weight. The fight is the weight cut before the actual fight,” he stated. “So I know I’ll win the first battle, and I know from the work that I’ve put in in the gym, the second battle is already won. I just need to lift the story, to say. I’ve envisioned this day many, many, many times. I didn’t expect to fight Rob so soon, but it is what it is. I feel like I am ready for this challenge, to say, now.”

Bably added that he’ll always shout out Wilkinson, the PFL Global champ in 2022, for his success in the PFL, because “that’s not something to downplay. And I’ll always respect that, but it’s my time. He’s done it, but it’s my time now. And that’s that.”

Despite that respect, Abraham Bably envisions a violent end to the pair’s fight at PFL San Diego this Saturday.

“All I can say is, I’m putting him to bed, respectfully. I don’t know when, I don’t know when it’s going to happen, I don’t know how it’s going to happen. But I cannot stress that speed always kills, mate. It always kills. It always kills, and with the right person with that torque, it’s a problem. So again, respect to Rob, and I wish him all the best. Wish him all the best.”

Watch our full interview with PFL San Diego’s Abraham Bably above.

The post PFL San Diego: Abraham Bably Looked to Mike Tyson In Making Move to 205lbs appeared first on Cageside Press.

For one, he told media outlets including Cageside Press following a split decision victory over Allan Nascimento, “I’m one of the most exciting fighters in the division. I’m always trying to scrap. I’m not here to wrestle, I’m here to throw hands and that’s it. Look for knockouts.”

In proving to himself, and others, that he’s willing to go into a fight, take risks like he did against Nascimento, and still come out with the win, Raposo (11-3) also feels that he’s earned a step up in competition.

“I really feel like I proved that I deserve a shot— I’m not going to say deserve, deserve is a tough word, but I’ve earned the shot against a better name, or a top 15 guy.”

The TUF veteran had some names in mind following his win, including ex-flyweight champ Brandon Moreno, and Edgar Chairez. Though he admits the former might be a stretch.

“I doubt I’m going to get Moreno, and I kind of, I was hyped up. I met him in Mexico, he’s such a nice guy but the Edgar Chairez one, I want that. He’s ranked in the top 15, I think it would be an absolute banger between me and him. Noche, September, I’m ready.”

The UFC has hosted Noche UFC events in September the past couple of years, and assuming that pattern stays true, the timing would certainly work out. Chairez fought earlier this month, picking up a win over Bruno Silva.

Watch the full UFC Vegas 119 post-fight press conference with Mitch Raposo above.

The post UFC Vegas 119: Mitch Raposo Wants Edgar Chairez at Noche UFC appeared first on Cageside Press.

Long before she ever stepped into the UFC, the Brazilian made a promise to herself, and to her first coach, that she’d become a UFC champion within 10 years. After dominating Karol Rosa at UFC Vegas 119 and breaking into the bantamweight top 10, Santos believes she’s right on schedule.

“My first coach, Dr. Helio’s, when we started working together way back in 2017 he told me that once you do something that you’re good at for 10 years, and you put a lot of effort into it, after 10 years you reach your peak,” Santos told reporters including Cageside Press at her post-fight scrum.

“That was 2017, and then I told him ok so I’m starting to train now, in 2027 I’m going to be the UFC champion. Here we are 9 years later, I’m in the UFC top 10, and the only thing in my mind is 2027 is the year I’m going to be the UFC champion.”

Santos never underestimated what Karol Rosa brought to the table. In fact, she admitted the matchup forced her to raise her game, knowing a win over a battle-tested veteran would answer one big question she had about herself.

“When my manager told me that I was going to fight Karol I was like damn that’s going to be a tough fight. I told him I’ll have to be on my best version everywhere. I have to do a great camp to be able to have a good performance against Karol,” she said.

“She’s a girl that has been with everyone, has beaten a lot of tough fighters. It’s so odd when you fight someone who has been there with the best and you don’t know if you are on her level. It was very good for me to come out there, test myself against someone that has faced some of the best fighters in the world. I can be a champion.”

Santos came into UFC Vegas 119 looking to make a statement, and she believes she did exactly that. By controlling Rosa from the moment the fight hit the mat, the Brazilian said she proved her grappling can overwhelm anyone standing across from her.

“This fight was going to be statement to the whole division,” said Santos.

“That my grappling, my Judo, my ground game, that I love to be a suffocating fighter on all of my fights. A lot of people say that when I get ahold of my opponent they will never be able to free themselves. To be able to do that with her just shows the entire division that I can do that to anyone.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Luana Santos above.

The post Luana Santos Eyes UFC Gold in 2027 After Statement Win appeared first on Cageside Press.