# Oleg Popov (fighter)

Oleg Sergeyevich Popov (Russian: Олег Сергеевич Попов; born 10 January 1992) is a Russian mixed martial artist. He is currently signed to the MMA promotion the Professional Fighters League (PFL) in the heavyweight division. A professional mixed martial arts competitor since 2015, he has previously fought in AMC Fight Nights and Bellator MMA.

## Background

Prior to his MMA career, Popov was champion of the Southern Military District in ARB, Winner of the Armed Forces Cup in ARB and is Master of Sports of Russia in ARB.

## Mixed martial arts career
### Early career

Popov started his professional MMA career in 2015 and mainly fought in Russia, particularly AMC Fight Nights and the MMA Series, the latter in where he won the heavyweight title. He amassed a record of 15–1 prior to being signed by Bellator MMA.
In his last bout before Bellator, Popov faced Antônio Silva at MMA Series 53 on June 24, 2022. He won the bout by knockout 15 seconds into the 2nd round.

### Bellator

Popov faced Gökhan Saricam on February 25, 2023, at Bellator 291. He won the bout by unanimous decision.

### Professional Fighters League
#### 2024 season

Popov debuted with the Professional Fighters League (PFL) at PFL 1 on April 4, 2024, and won her bout against Steve Mowry by TKO in the second round.
Popov faced Davion Franklin at PFL 4 on June 13, 2024. He won the bout by unanimous decision.
Popov was scheduled to face Valentin Moldavsky in the semifinals of the 2024 Heavyweight tournament at PFL 7 on August 2, 2024, however Moldavsky was forced to withdraw due to injury and was replaced by Linton Vassell. Popov won the bout via unanimous decision.
Popov faced Denis Goltsov in the finals of the 2024 Heavyweight tournament at PFL 10 on November 29, 2024 and lost the fight via a triangle choke submission in the first round.

#### 2025 Tournament

On March 5, 2025, the promotion officially revealed that Popov will join the 2025 PFL Heavyweight Tournament.
In the quarterfinal, Popov is scheduled to face Linton Vassell on May 1, 2025, at PFL 4.

## Championships and accomplishments
### Mixed martial arts

* MMA Series
** MMA Series Heavyweight Championship (One time)

## Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown :
| 21 matches | 19 wins | 2 losses |
| By knockout | 9 | 0 |
| By submission | 3 | 1 |
| By decision | 7 | 1 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
| Loss | 19–2 | Denis Goltsov | Technical Submission (triangle choke) | PFL 10 (2024) | November 29, 2024 | 1 | 2:55 | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | 2024 PFL Heavyweight Tournament Final. |
| Win | 19–1 | Linton Vassell | Decision (unanimous) | PFL 7 (2024) | August 2, 2024 | 3 | 5:00 | Nashville, Tennessee, United States | 2024 PFL Heavyweight Tournament Semifinal. |
| Win | 18–1 | Davion Franklin | Decision (unanimous) | PFL 4 (2024) | June 13, 2024 | 3 | 5:00 | Uncasville, Connecticut, United States | Catchweight (268.5 lb) bout; Franklin missed weight. |
| Win | 17–1 | Steve Mowry | TKO (punches) | PFL 1 (2024) | April 4, 2024 | 2 | 3:47 | San Antonio, Texas, United States | |
| Win | 16–1 | Gökhan Saricam | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 291 | February 25, 2023 | 3 | 5:00 | Dublin, Ireland | |
| Win | 15–1 | Antônio Silva | KO (punch) | MMA Series 53 | June 24, 2022 | 2 | 0:15 | Moscow, Russia | |
| Win | 14–1 | Alejandro Solorzano | TKO (corner stoppage) | MMA Series 43 | October 30, 2021 | 2 | N/A | Moscow, Russia | |
| Win | 13–1 | Marcos Brigagão | Submission (triangle choke) | Blacksmith Fight Championship 3 | September 25, 2021 | 3 | 2:10 | Anapa, Russia | |
| Win | 12–1 | Fernando Batista | TKO (punches) | Open Fighting Championship 6 | July 4, 2021 | 2 | 2:46 | Krasnodar, Russia | |
| Win | 11–1 | Fayoz Shomurodov | Submission (armbar) | MMA Series 33 | May 29, 2021 | 1 | 1:39 | Rublyovka, Russia | Won the vacant MMA Series Heavyweight Championship. |
| Win | 10–1 | Abdul Elwahab Saeed | KO (punches) | MMA Series 26 | February 20, 2021 | 5 | 5:00 | Voronezh, Russia | |
| Win | 9–1 | Sergey Alekseevich | Submission (triangle choke) | MMA Series 7 | November 21, 2020 | 2 | 3:13 | Sochi, Russia | |
| Win | 8–1 | Magomedbag Agaev | Decision (unanimous) | Fight Nights Global 97 | September 18, 2020 | 3 | 5:00 | Elista, Russia | |
| Win | 7–1 | Denis Arkhireev | TKO (punches) | MMA Series 7 | June 20, 2020 | 1 | 5:00 | Taganrog, Russia | |
| Win | 6–1 | Gerônimo dos Santos | TKO (punches) | S-70: Plotforma Cup 2019 | August 14, 2019 | 2 | 1:49 | Sochi, Russia | |
| Win | 5–1 | Alexander Soldatkin | Decision (unanimous) | Battle on Volga 10 | April 14, 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Tolyatti, Russia | |
| Win | 4–1 | Yuriy Fedorov | TKO (punches) | M-1 Challenge 98 | November 2, 2018 | 2 | 2:38 | Chelyabinsk, Russia | |
| Win | 3–1 | Adam Bogatyrev | Decision (unanimous) | M-1 Challenge 95 | July 21, 2018 | 3 | 5:00 | Nazran, Russia | |
| Loss | 2–1 | Yusup Suliemanov | Decision (unanimous) | Fight Nights Global 54: Pavlovich vs. Kudin | November 16, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Rostov-on-Don, Russia | Catchweight (220 lb) bout. |
| Win | 2–0 | Timofey Mishev | Decision (unanimous) | Fight Nights Global 48: Enomoto vs. Molodtsov | May 26, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Moscow, Russia | |
| Win | 1–0 | Anton Vyazigin | KO (punches) | Fight Nights Global 42 | October 23, 2015 | 1 | 2:56 | Saint Petersburg, Russia | Heavyweight debut. |