Heavyweight veteran Denis Goltsov finally went all the way, stunning Oleg Popov with a shock submission win at the 2024 PFL World Championship.
The Russian produced three consecutive finishes this season to make it back to the finals in what marked his fifth season shooting for glory in the PFL SmartCage.
Against Popov, he faced an opponent who certainly isn’t used to losing. And beyond just the shock of defeat, not many would have predicted this finish.
Popov secured an early takedown but didn’t threaten with much offense from the top position. His opponent then popped the commentators by throwing up a triangle attempt from the bottom.
After adjusting his submission, the referee eventually stepped in to pull Goltsov off of his unconscious opponent.
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The commentary team initially believed the newly crowned champ was retiring after he took his gloves off immediately after the win, but Goltsov later clarified that this isn’t the case.
After some prompting from Dan Hardy, the Russian said he wants to fight Francis Ngannou next year after the former UFC champion made his PFL debut in October, stopping Renan Ferreira in the first round.
With the likes of Vadim Nemkov and Ante Delija being matched for January next year in Dubai, Goltsov has certainly emerged as the frontrunner for being “The Predator’s” next opponent in the PFL.
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