Opinion: Flyweight Winner Will Have Chance to Become Women’s Face of PFL

Editor’s note: The views and opinions expressed below are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Sherdog.com, its affiliates and sponsors or its parent company, Evolve Media.

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With the 2024 Professional Fighters League women’s flyweight playoffs set to begin, the opportunity exists for one of the four competitors to become a champion and receive a $1 million check. There’s also a realistic chance at stardom for the winner. Between Dakota Ditcheva, Jena Bishop, Liz Carmouche and Taila Santos, one woman will have quite the prize awaiting her.

The title and massive payday are one thing, but there’s another opportunity on the line: becoming the women’s face of the PFL. The organization has not had a polarizing female star since Kayla Harrison departed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Larissa Pacheco, the lone woman to defeat Harrison during her PFL tenure, has not been seen or heard from at all in 2024. There have been rumors that she will face Bellator MMA champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino, although nothing has been confirmed to date.

The only women featured during the 2024 PFL regular season are in the flyweight division, and the promotion finds itself in fantastic position to strike gold. With two former UFC veterans in Carmouche and Santos, the PFL has two women who have already established their legacy. They have found even more success outside of the Octagon, especially Carmouche, who has gone on to claim the Bellator women’s flyweight title. In Bishop and Ditcheva, the PFL has two women who have been built up from within and been given a spotlight to shine in 2024. Although they had previous stops in their career with other promotions, both women have boosted themselves to earn high credibility and respect.

All four women will have their opportunity to seize the moment, not only as champion but as a selling point for the PFL. Having a female face will go far as the PFL continues its global expansion, and all four semifinalists have traveled their own unique path to the playoffs. It could be viewed as groundwork for the next wave of female talent to join the PFL. Bishop, Carmouche, Ditcheva and Santos are all marketable in their own way. Their respective journeys have been different from each other, but all stand as testaments to what can happen when winning with the PFL.

Only having to worry about the fight and opponent in front of you can be a relief in a time where other promotions are making fights based on popularity, social media following or simple favoritism. The PFL sets the season format. Then it is up to the fighters competing to get themselves to the next level. The organization has proven it will take care of branding and social media presence. All the fighter needs to worry about is the task at hand.

Moreover, those who fight in the tournament will have repetitive chances to showcase themselves to the world, just like the four playoff contestants did this year. Continuing to get out in the public eye on a consistent and quick basis is a great strategy for building a fighter into a star.

In their own unique way, the women in the flyweight playoff bracket have gotten themselves to this position, and the two who come out of the semifinals at PFL 7 this Friday in Nashville, Tennessee, will be one step closer to taking over, not only as champion but as a star and as the undeniable female face of the PFL.