Ditcheva Admits Fear Persists After Hand Surgery

Dakota Ditcheva has fully recovered from reconstructive hand surgery but says the mental battle remains as she prepares to return against Denise Kielholtz at PFL New York on Friday.

The unbeaten British flyweight broke her hand against Sumiko Inaba in 2025, an injury that kept her out for more than a year. According to Sherdog, Ditcheva underwent reconstructive surgery and has since regained full physical function, but confidence in the repaired hand has been slower to return.

Ditcheva On Mental Hurdles Before PFL Return

"You have to try and forget about it," Ditcheva said of the recovery process. "I'm doing everything I was doing before it was broken, so for now, it's just the mind. I don't have any evidence to suggest the hand isn't as strong as it was before; I'm hitting just as hard as I was before."

She also revealed that nerves still surface before training sessions. "When I get ready for training in the morning, I'm nervous," Ditcheva added. "But that's what makes me go and those feeling are what I live for every day."

Ditcheva faces former Bellator kickboxing champion Kielholtz on July 31 at UBS Arena in Long Island as part of the PFL Summer Series. The prelims stream on the ESPN app at 4 p.m. Eastern, with the main card on ESPN at 7 p.m.

Original reporting:

• sherdog.com — Dakota Ditcheva admits she’s still fighting fear following serious hand injury