By The Numbers: Denis Goltsov vs. Oleg Popov

For all of his success over five-plus years in the Professional Fighters League, Denis Goltsov still has nothing tangible to which he can cling.

“The Russian Bogatyr” will make another run at a seven-figure payday when he locks horns with countryman Oleg Popov in the heavyweight final and helps anchor the PFL 2024 Season Championships this Friday at King Saud University Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Goltsov has rattled off nine wins in 10 outings. The lone defeat? A second-round technical knockout of Renan Ferreira in the 2023 heavyweight final. Popov, meanwhile, has put together 17 consecutive victories. He qualified for the tournament championship with a three-round unanimous decision over Kill Cliff Fight Club export Linton Vassell at PFL 7 on Aug. 2.

As Goltsov and Popov make final preparations ahead of their looming confrontation in the Middle East, a look at some of the numbers that have accompanied them to this point:

34: Years of age for Goltsov, who was born on June 10, 1990 in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

11: Goltsov wins by submission, accounting for 31% of his career total (35). His methods of choice: two triangle chokes, two armbars, two Ezekiel chokes, one straight armbar, one guillotine choke, one kimura, one brabo choke and one arm-triangle choke. Goltsov holds 18 other wins by knockout or technical knockout (52%) and six more by decision (17%).

19: First-round finishes on the Goltsov resume, highlighted by his 18-second knockout of Yorgan De Castro at PFL 5 on June 16, 2023.

4: Countries in which Goltsov has plied his mixed martial arts trade. He has gone 20-4 in his native Russia, 13-3 in the United States, 2-0 in Ukraine and 0-1 in Belarus.

189: Combined victories between the 13 men—Vassell, De Castro, Tim Johnson, Thiago Santos, Jordan Heiderman, Cezar Ferreira, Maurice Greene, Cody Goodale, Brandon Sayles, Muhammed DeReese, Satoshi Ishii, Kelvin Tiller and Jared Rosholt—Goltsov has beaten as a member of the UFC roster. They sport a .653 cumulative winning percentage at 189-100-1.

32: Years of age for Popov, who was born in Yashalta, Russia, on Jan. 10, 1992.

9: Popov victories by knockout or technical knockout, accounting for 47% of his career total (19). His list of victims outside the PFL: Antonio Silva, Alejandro Solorzano, Fernando Batista, Abdul Elwahab Saeed, Denis Arkhireev, Geronimo dos Santos, Yuriy Fedorov and Anton Vyazigin. Popov owns three other victories by submission (16%) and seven more by decision (37%).

45: Rounds started by Popov as a professional mixed martial artist. He has involved the judges on eight different occasions and carries a 7-1 record in those bouts.

2,935: Days since Popov suffered his only career setback. He dropped a unanimous decision to Yusup Suleymanov at a Fight Nights Global show on Nov. 16, 2016.

.723: Cumulative winning percentage between the three men—Vassell, Davion Franklin and Steve Mowry—Popov has defeated as a member of the UFC roster. They boast a combined record of 40-15-1.