Goltsov vs Johnson

Who won Goltsov vs Johnson?

Denis Goltsov beat Timothy Johnson by knockout in the 1st round during the main event of PFL 7, on Friday 2nd August 2024 at Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 3 rounds in the Heavyweight division, which meant the weight limit was 265 pounds (18.9 stone or 120.2 KG).

Goltsov vs Johnson stats

Denis Goltsov stepped into the octagon with a record of 34 wins, 8 losses and 0 draws, 17 of those wins coming by the way of knock out and 11 by submission.

Timothy Johnson made his way to the cage with a record of 18 wins, 9 losses and 0 draws, 10 of those wins coming by knock out and 3 by submission.

This was Denis Goltsov's 16th fight in the PFL, having made his debut for the promotion in 2019. Timothy Johnson marked his 2nd fight for them, having made his own debut for the promotion in 2024.

Denis Goltsov's PFL record stood at 13-3-0, while Timothy Johnson's came in at 1-1-0.

The stats suggested Johnson had a slight advantage in power over Goltsov, with a 56% knock out percentage over Goltsov's 50%.

If the fight went to the ground, their records suggested Goltsov had an advantage over Johnson, with a 32% submission rate over Johnson's 17%.

Denis Goltsov was the younger man by 5 years, at 34 years old.

Goltsov had a height advantage of 2 inches over Johnson. Despite this, both fighters had a equal reach.

Goltsov was the more experienced professional fighter, having had 15 more fights, and made his debut in 2010, 2 months earlier than Johnson, whose first professional fight was in 2010. He had fought 30 more professional rounds, 79 to Johnson's 49.

Goltsov vs Johnson form

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

In his last fight before this contest, he had won against Thiago Santos at PFL 4: 2024 Regular Season on 13th June 2024 by knockout in the 1st round at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, United States.

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

Going into that contest, 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.

Before that, he had defeated 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.

He was victorious against Yorgan De Castro at PFL 5 on 16th June 2023 by knockout in the 1st round at Overtime Elite Arena, Atlanta.

Johnson had beaten 2 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 1 of them, going the distance once.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had won against Danilo Marques at PFL 4: 2024 Regular Season on 13th June 2024 by knockout in the 1st round at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, United States.

Previous to that, he had beaten Said Sowma at Bellator 294 on 21st April 2023 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at Neal S. Blaisdell Center, Honolulu.

Going into that contest, he had been beaten by Linton Vassell at Bellator 277 on 15th April 2022 by knockout in the 1st round at SAP Center, San Jose.

Before that, he had been defeated by Fedor Emelianenko at Bellator MMA on 23rd October 2021 by knockout in the 1st round at VTB Arena, Moscow, Russia.

He had lost to Valentin Moldavsky at Bellator 261 on 25th June 2021 by unanimous decision in their 5 round contest at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, United States.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Denis Goltsov had been fighting more than Timothy Johnson.

Going to this contest, Denis Goltsov had last fought 2 months and 24 days ago, while Timothy Johnson's last outing had been 2 months and 24 days ago.

Goltsov's last 5 fights had come over a period of 1 year, 2 months and 21 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 2 months and 30 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 8 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 1.6 rounds on average.

Johnson's last 5 fights had come over a period of 3 years, 2 months and 12 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 7 months and 21 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 11 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 2.2 rounds on average.

What time did Goltsov vs Johnson start?

The fighters were expected to walk out at around 2:40 AM UTC , which was 10:40 PM EST or 7:40 PM PST on the West Coast of America, or 3:40 AM BST in the UK.

What were the odds on Goltsov vs Johnson?

Denis Goltsov was a 2/11 (-560) favourite going into the contest, while Timothy Johnson made his way into the ring at 18/5 (+360) with oddsmakers.