Nikita Ababiy on friendship with Chris Colbert and his career path

Nikita “White Chocolate” Ababiy (7-0, 6KOs) is a middleweight prospect from New York with flashy hand speed and charisma. The nickname “White Chocolate” came when African American fighters at the boxing gym joked that he fought with too much athleticism for a white fighter. He has sparred extensively with former two-time middleweight world champion Daniel Jacobs, and considers the brash prospect Chris “Showtime” Colbert to be like a brother. Ababiy will be featured on the undercard of KSI vs. Logan Paul II, a main event between two incredibly famous YouTubers. Ababiy has been a pro ever since DAZN launched its first ever USA boxing event on October 5, 2018 in Chicago, and he aims to show that he is only getting better when he steps into the ring on Saturday night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Ababiy enjoys celebrating his victories by dancing in the ring, but he remains humble in his approach. According to Ababiy, his goals over the next few years are to “definitely get some titles, move smart, move fast, and just change my family’s life around.”

He only recently earned enough money to have his own bedroom, and ended up moving his family into a new home after turning professional. Helping provide his family better opportunities is a key motivating factor in the 21-year old’s career. While most young prospect’s aspirations are self-motivated, Ababiy understands that his career has greater implications than his personal fame and glory.

Ababiy has a strong friendship with the flamboyant Brooklyn based lightweight prospect Chris “Primetime” Colbert (13-0, 5KOs), who even gave Ababiy instructions in the corner during one of his recent outings. Ababiy says that Colbert “is my brother. I’ve seen the first day that he walked into the gym and started boxing. I think I was like 10 [years old]. It was like 10 years ago. He’s a brother from another mother. It’s all love between me and him.” Like Ababiy, Colbert is undefeated and has the goal of becoming a world champion in the next few years. Colbert may run his mouth more often than Ababiy, but they both enjoy dancing after victories and having fun.

Nikita believes the help of a new strength and conditioning coach will allow him to improve immensely. Ababiy says, “I’ve been working on my physique. I’m probably one of the only fighters without a six-pack. Everybody keeps talking about it, but I got a new physical trainer and we’ve been working a lot on strength and conditioning. I’m going to show up Saturday night and do my thing.”

Even though Ababiy attests to not having the most chiseled physique, boxing fans learned on June 7th, when Anthony Joshua defended his heavyweight belts against Andy Ruiz, that the guy with the more sculpted body doesn’t always win.

Nikita Ababiy is certainly a prospect to follow, as he is well motivated and possesses tunnel vision towards his goal of becoming a world-class fighter. He will be fighting on the early portion of the KSI vs. Logan Paul II undercard, which airs at 7PM ET on the DAZN streaming app. Ababiy is certainly worth checking out, and he will likely deliver an early knockout, as he gets exposed to fresh faces who are tuning in to watch the main event between the two YouTube superstars.