A sparring story is at the center of an online feud that has escalated between the promising middleweights Jahi Tucker and Lorenzo “Truck” Simpson.
They will settle their grudge over 10 rounds on June 21 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
Tucker, who was born in Brooklyn, and Baltimore’s Simpson clash on the undercard of the Top Rank bill headlined by the middleweight contender Vito Mielnicki Jnr and Kamil Gardzielk.
“This man is telling everyone that he dropped me in sparring,” Tucker, 14-1-1 (6 KOs), said. “That never happened. I beat him around the ring, and I’m going to do it again – for real this time – on June 21. Truck talked his way into this fight, and I’m going to beat him down for however long it lasts.”
Simpson countered: “I’m glad that he finally took the fight. He spoke on me. I’ve been going through many things, but I’m focused now. A lot of fighters try to paint this tough narrative, but at the end of the day, we have to fight. This will be a great clash of styles, and I think we can steal the show.”
The 22-year-old Tucker signed with Top Rank when he was just 17, turning pro in 2020.
Earlier in April he twice dropped the English veteran Troy Williamson on his way to a 10-round decision win.
Simpson, 25, was a quality amateur, capturing several national titles and championship medals, and going 13-0 as a pro before a decision loss to Vladimir Hernandez in August 2023. A contested split decision defeat by Raiko Santana followed in June 2024, but in February – and at the Prudential Center – he stopped Trevon Smith in a round.
