Goltsov vs Popov

Who won Goltsov vs Popov?

Denis Goltsov beat Oleg Popov by submission in the 1st round during the main card of PFL 2024 Championships, on Friday 29th November 2024 at The Mayadeen in Riyadh.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 5 rounds in the Heavyweight division, which meant the weight limit was 265 pounds (18.9 stone or 120.2 KG).

Goltsov vs Popov stats

Denis Goltsov stepped into the octagon with a record of 35 wins, 8 losses and 0 draws, 18 of those wins coming by the way of knock out and 11 by submission.

Oleg Popov made his way to the cage with a record of 19 wins, 1 loss and 0 draws, 9 of those wins coming by knock out and 3 by submission.

This was Denis Goltsov's 17th fight in the PFL, having made his debut for the promotion in 2019. Oleg Popov marked his 4th fight for them, having made his own debut for the promotion in 2024.

Denis Goltsov's PFL record stood at 14-3-0, while Oleg Popov's came in at 3-1-0.

The stats suggested Goltsov had a slight advantage in power over Popov, with a 51% knock out percentage over Popov's 47%.

If the fight went to the ground, their records suggested Goltsov had an advantage over Popov, with a 31% submission rate over Popov's 16%.

Denis Goltsov was the older man by 1 year, at 34 years old.

Goltsov had a height advantage of 4 inches over Popov.

Goltsov was the more experienced professional fighter, having had 23 more fights, and made his debut in 2010, 5 years and 2 months earlier than Popov, whose first professional fight was in 2015. He had fought 34 more professional rounds, 80 to Popov's 46.

Goltsov vs Popov form

Goltsov had beaten 4 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 3 of them, going to the judges once.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had won against Timothy Johnson at PFL 7: 2024 Playoffs on 2nd August 2024 by knockout in the 1st round at Nashville Municipal Auditorium, Nashville, United States.

Previous to that, he had beaten Thiago Santos at PFL 4: 2024 Regular Season on 13th June 2024 by knockout in the 1st round at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville.

Going into that contest, he had defeated Linton Vassell at PFL 1: 2024 Regular Season on 4th April 2024 by knockout in the 3rd round at Boeing Center, San Antonio.

Before that, he had lost to Renan Ferreira at PFL 10: 2023 PFL World Championship on 24th November 2023 by knockout in the 2nd round at The Anthem, Washington.

He was victorious against Jordan Heiderman at PFL Playoffs: Heavyweights & Women’s Featherweights on 18th August 2023 by submission in the 1st round at The Theater at Madison Square Garden, New York City.

Activity check

Goltsov's last 5 fights had come over a period of 1 year, 7 months and 12 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 3 months and 28 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 8 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 1.6 rounds on average.

Popov's last 4 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 1 month and 5 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 6 months and 10 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 11 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 2.8 rounds on average.

What time did Goltsov vs Popov start?

The fighters were expected to walk out at around 6:10 PM UTC , which was 1:10 PM EST or 10:10 AM PST on the West Coast of America, or 6:10 PM GMT in the UK.

What were the odds on Goltsov vs Popov?

Denis Goltsov was a 26/25 (+110) underdog going into the contest, while Oleg Popov made his way into the ring at 3/4 (-140) with oddsmakers.