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MMA: Dakota Ditcheva to fight in South Africa in PFL event

MMA: Dakota Ditcheva to fight in South Africa in PFL event

BBC News07-05-2025

Dakota Ditcheva will face Sumiko Inaba in a non-title bout at the PFL's first fight night in Cape Town, South Africa on 26 July.
The Manchester fighter has not competed since winning the PFL flyweight world title last November and publicly berated the MMA promotion for failing to book her.
Ditcheva, 26, will fight alongside former Bellator champion Johnny Eblen. He will be fighting in a 'world title' bout despite the Bellator titles being scrapped earlier this year.
The PFL told Ditcheva and many of her fellow PFL 2024 champions and Bellator belt holders that they would be featuring at their PFL Champions Series events in 2025.
Ditcheva and Eblen will headline the PFL's inaugural event in Africa, overseen by Francis Ngannou.
The PFL Champions Series portion of the event will be after the opening round of an all-African tournament across several weight classes.
Unbeaten American fighter Eblen, 33, will defend his world title against the Netherlands' Costello van Steenis.
Inaba, 34, was a regular in the Bellator flyweight division but was not part of the PFL's 2024 flyweight tournament.
Ditcheva ran through the competition to become the first British woman to win a major MMA world title.
The Englishwoman is unbeaten in 14 fights with 13 finishes.

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