Dakota Ditcheva missed the chance to contend for the PFL’s inaugural flyweight title after undergoing hand surgery. Her absence allowed Jena Bishop to beat Liz Carmouche at PFL Chicago on October 16 and become the promotion’s first 125 lbs champion. While many thought the division would move on with Ditcheva watching from the sidelines, the undefeated fighter shared good news.

In an interview with Ariel Helwani, ‘Dangerous’ said doctors have medically cleared her to fight, and she has already started grappling.  

“I’m good. I’m all cleared, and I’m back in training now, so yeah, I’m ready to go,” Ditcheva said. “I’m just waiting for a date for the belt. I’m cleared, and I’ve been grappling for a few weeks now, so yeah. I just kind of took my time a little bit with the striking. 

“I don’t have a fight coming up, so I was like, ‘Let me just focus on the grappling.’ That works out well now that Jena is the person with the belt.”    

To be clear, Dakota Ditcheva didn’t face any disciplinary medical suspension for her hand injury. Her surgery forced her to stay out of competition, so her hands could heal properly. 

But now that she is cleared, ‘Dangerous’ would most likely return against the new PFL flyweight champion, Jena Bishop, whenever the promotion decides to schedule it.

Dakota Ditcheva’s hand injury remained one of the toughest phases of her life, as it caused her a substantial amount of time away from competition.

The first-time undefeated 16-0 fighter broke her left hand against Sumiko Inaba at PFL Africa 1 in 2025. Doctors initially advised her to undergo surgery, but Ditcheva refused. As a result, that injury kept her out for almost a year.

She was eventually scheduled to return against Denise Kielholtz on February 7, 2026. However, Ditcheva once again broke her hand, this time her right, before the fight, which forced the PFL to cancel the bout. The reason for her injury was not made public.

Following those setbacks, the Manchester-based fighter made her grand return in July 2026 vs. Kielholtz and picked up a dominant unanimous decision victory. But bad luck didn’t leave Ditcheva alone, as she re-injured both of her hands during the fight. 

More importantly, she kept the injury secret from her corner so they wouldn’t stop the fight, and she disclosed it after the bout was over.

Dakota Ditcheva finally decided to undergo surgery and thought the recovery process would keep her out for another year. Fortunately, she escaped that fate and was cleared to fight in a much shorter time. 

After sharing the positive update about her injury, Ditcheva has set her sights on one goal only. She wants to fight for the flyweight belt next, and she also revealed her preferred timeline for that bout. 

Dakota Ditcheva wants to fight Jena Bishop in early 2027 

At PFL Chicago, Liz Carmouche entered the cage as the favorite to beat Jena Bishop and finally set up a showdown with Dakota Ditcheva. Bishop, however, derailed those plans by earning a unanimous decision victory to become the first undisputed flyweight champion.

Soon after, Ditcheva entered the cage and had a face-off with Bishop, seemingly clearing her next destination. Many found Bishop’s win surprising because she faced a former UFC fighter. Still, Ditcheva wasn’t particularly baffled by the result. 

“I wasn’t shocked, no,” Ditcheva said. “I feel like Jenna has definitely improved a lot, and I honestly think Liz was too bothered about me. She should’ve been bothered about Jena.”   

While reflecting on her next outing, ‘Dangerous’ confirmed that she is 100% booked for the belt, and she is hoping for February or March for the bout. However, the PFL seems interested in pushing the fight to a later date. 

“Yeah, for sure. One hundred percent I am (fighting for the belt),” Ditcheva said. “I’m asking for February, maybe March, but I don’t know whether they want to try to push it back a little bit. I don’t know, but I want February or March, for sure.”  

With that, Dakota Ditcheva is all set to make her comeback next year, and it will be interesting to see whether she can maintain the same dominance she showed before undergoing hand surgery.