Ditcheva On New York Boos After Kielholtz Win

Dakota Ditcheva heard the jeers from the UBS Arena crowd after her lopsided decision win over Denise Kielholtz at PFL New York on Friday, and they got under her skin.

Ditcheva closed as a massive -10,000 favorite and delivered a shutout 30-27 performance across all three scorecards, per MMA Mania, but sections of the crowd booed when the final bell sounded without a finish. "It bothered me," she told reporters afterward. "Only because I'm passionate about the work I do, and I wanted a stoppage myself."

Ditcheva Took Cage Time Over Flash Finish

The unbeaten flyweight said her corner reminded her to ignore the noise. "I don't want them to boo because I want to be exciting and entertaining for you guys," Ditcheva added. "But at the same time, I'm in there fighting. I'm not in there performing a dance. So I have to do what's right for me to get the win and come out on top." She framed the full 15 minutes as valuable experience after a year out of competition, noting her coaches were pleased with the cage time even without the early stoppage.

PFL CEO John Martin confirmed the promotion is booking Ditcheva against Liz Carmouche next, widely regarded as her toughest available matchup. Ditcheva kept the pre-fight talk short. "I don't have no message for her," she said. "I will get in the cage, beat her, and that'll be that."

Original reporting:

• mmamania.com — Ditcheva bothered by New York boo-birds: ‘I wanted a stoppage myself’ | MMA Mania