Oleg Popov

Oleg Popov (; 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, where he was the 2025 PFL Heavyweight Tournament Champion. A professional mixed martial arts competitor since 2015, he has previously fought in AMC Fight Nights and Bellator MMA. As of March 26, 2026, he is #1 in the PFL heavyweight rankings.

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 his 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 was scheduled to face Linton Vassell in a rematch on May 1, 2025, at PFL 4. However, on April 28, it was announced Vassell has pulled out of the bout and was replaced by Karl Williams. He won the fight by split decision.

In the semifinals, Popov faced Rodrigo Nascimento at PFL 7 on June 27, 2025. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

In the final, Popov faced Alexander Romanov at PFL 10, on August 21, 2025. He won the fight via split decision.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts Professional Fighters League 2025 PFL Heavyweight Tournament Champion MMA Series MMA Series Heavyweight Championship (One time)

Mixed martial arts record Win

Magomed Magomedov Decision (unanimous) BetCity Fight Nights 135

Elista, Russia Win

Alexander Romanov Decision (split) PFL 10 (2025)

Hollywood, Florida, United States Win

Rodrigo Nascimento Decision (unanimous) PFL 7 (2025)

Chicago, Illinois, United States Win

Karl Williams Decision (split) PFL 4 (2025)

Orlando, Florida, United States Loss

Denis Goltsov Technical Submission (triangle choke) PFL 10 (2024)

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Win

Linton Vassell Decision (unanimous) PFL 7 (2024)

Nashville, Tennessee, United States Win

Davion Franklin Decision (unanimous) PFL 4 (2024)

Uncasville, Connecticut, United States Win

Steve Mowry TKO (punches) PFL 1 (2024)

San Antonio, Texas, United States Win

Gökhan Saricam Decision (unanimous) Bellator 291

Dublin, Ireland Win

Antônio Silva KO (punch) MMA Series 53

Moscow, Russia Win

Alejandro Solorzano TKO (corner stoppage) MMA Series 43

Moscow, Russia Win

Marcos Brigagão Submission (triangle choke) Blacksmith FC 3

Anapa, Russia Win

Fernando Batista TKO (punches) Open FC 6

Krasnodar, Russia Win

Fayoz Shomurodov Submission (armbar) MMA Series 33

Rublyovka, Russia Win

Abdul Elwahab Saeed KO (punches) MMA Series 26

Voronezh, Russia Win

Sergey Alekseevich Submission (triangle choke) MMA Series 7

Sochi, Russia Win

Magomedbag Agaev Decision (unanimous) Fight Nights Global 97

Elista, Russia Win

Denis Arkhireev TKO (punches) MMA Series 7

Taganrog, Russia Win

Gerônimo dos Santos TKO (punches) League S-70: Plotforma Cup 2019

Sochi, Russia Win

Alexander Soldatkin Decision (unanimous) Samara MMA Federation: Battle on Volga 10

Tolyatti, Russia Win

Yuriy Fedorov TKO (punches) M-1 Challenge 98

Chelyabinsk, Russia Win

Adam Bogatyrev Decision (unanimous) M-1 Challenge 95

Nazran, Russia Loss

Yusup Suliemanov Decision (unanimous) Fight Nights Global 54

Rostov-on-Don, Russia Win

Timofey Mishev Decision (unanimous) Fight Nights Global 48

Moscow, Russia Win

Anton Vyazigin KO (punches) Fight Nights Global 42

Saint Petersburg, Russia