People · Russia

Nikita Popkov

3×3 one-handed · top 0.58% of 74,621 all-time · competing since October 2017 · 2017POPK01

Nikita Popkov has been competing for 9 years. His best event is the 3×3 one-handed: a personal-best single of 9.14, set at Rudny Open 2025, puts him in the top 0.58% of the 74,621 people who have ever been ranked in the event, and 6th in Russia. Until November 2013, no official 3×3 one-handed solve in the world had been that fast. Across 9 competitions since October 2017, he has put 674 official solves on the record across 17 events. Solve to solve, his 3×3 times vary about 15% around a typical one; 79% of the 36,406 competitors with ten or more counted rounds hold a tighter spread. His 3×3 best has come down from 20.58 in October 2017 to 7.60, a 63% improvement. Nikita has entered nine competitions, more competitions than 91% of everyone who has ever competed.

3×3 one-handed

best event — top 0.58% of 74,621 all-time

9.14

signature single · Rudny Open 2025

674

official solves on the record

15%

solve-to-solve spread · wider than 79% of the field

Standing, event by event

vs everyone ever ranked

Event	PB single	PB average		Russia
3×3 one-handed	9.14	14.33	top 0.58%	6 / 1,772
Square-1	6.16	12.89	top 0.92%	1 / 760
4×4	26.58	32.34	top 1.2%	10 / 2,085
3×3 blindfolded	19.72	2:00.71	top 1.3%	3 / 310
Pyraminx	2.36	3.66	top 1.9%	35 / 3,784
3×3	7.60	9.47	top 2.2%	60 / 6,485
Skewb	2.40	4.44	top 2.6%	26 / 2,264
2×2	1.65	2.30	top 2.9%	98 / 4,788
5×5	53.58	58.84	top 2.9%	10 / 942
3×3 Fewest Moves	24 moves	26.00	top 4.1%	4 / 367
Clock	4.99	6.73	top 4.4%	11 / 715
Megaminx	48.98	56.95	top 4.7%	29 / 999
3×3 Multi-Blind	20 of 21 cubes · 56:28	—	early days — 1 solve	5 / 99
6×6	1:46.47	1:52.54	top 6.1%	9 / 343
7×7	2:50.96	2:53.23	top 8.2%	11 / 271
4×4 blindfolded	5:08.85	—	early days — 1 solve	13 / 37
5×5 blindfolded	15:53.00	—	early days — 1 solve	10 / 23

Percentile against all competitors ever ranked in each event, a fairer measure than raw rank, because the pools differ by a factor of ten.

The line so far

Best single per competition, 3×3. Faster is higher — the axis is the right way up.

The story so far

14 Nov 202522 personal bests in one day at Rudny Open 2025.
7 Dec 2019First sub-10 3×3: 9.26 at Krasnodar Winter 2019.
7 Dec 2019Eight personal bests in one day at Krasnodar Winter 2019.
19 Jul 2019Five personal bests in one day at NSK Cubing Fest 2019.
22 Jun 2019Five personal bests in one day at CCC Qualification Barnaul 2019.
13 Apr 2019Nine personal bests in one day at Novosibirsk Planetarium Open 2019.

Competitions

Rudny Open 2025 · 14 Nov 2025 — 22 personal bests set
Krasnodar Winter 2019 · 7 Dec 2019 — 8 personal bests set
NSK Cubing Fest 2019 · 19 Jul 2019 — 5 personal bests set
CCC Qualification Barnaul 2019 · 22 Jun 2019 — 5 personal bests set
Novosibirsk Planetarium Open 2019 · 13 Apr 2019 — 9 personal bests set
YJ Fest Siberia 2019 · 25 Jan 2019 — 14 personal bests set
Novosibirsk Planetarium Open 2018 · 14 Apr 2018 — 10 personal bests set
Krasnoyarsk Winter Open 2018 · 3 Feb 2018 — 4 personal bests set
Barnaul Open 2017 · 14 Oct 2017 — 2 personal bests set

Reading this page: a single is one solve's time · an average is the middle three of five solves, best and worst discarded · a PB is a personal best · a DNF (did not finish) is an attempt with no valid result: a popped piece, an unsolved face, an over-limit memorisation · top X% compares against everyone ever ranked in that event, which is fairer than raw rank because event pools differ tenfold.

The circuit

The people whose scorecards keep turning up next to his.

Dmitriy Shevchenko — met in 70 rounds, finished ahead 27 times
Mikhail Kopylov (Михаил Копылов) — met in 63 rounds, finished ahead 11 times
Nikita Razzamazov (Никита Раззама́зов) — met in 57 rounds, finished ahead 24 times

Next targets

A sub-8 3×3 one-handed single — 155 people have one; it is 1.14 away.
A sub-6 Square-1 single — 210 people have one; it is 0.16 away.

Targets move as he improves.