The grudge match between Jahi Tucker and Lorenzo Simpson joins the undercard of Vito Mielnicki Jr vs Kamil Gardzielik. The event takes place at Prudential Center in Newark, NJ on Saturday, June 21. The pair square off in a scheduled 10-round bout at middleweight.
Simpson was originally scheduled to face William Townsel of Pine Bluff, AR in an eight-round matchup. On Thursday, Tucker was announced as his new opponent, following their social media exchange after a recent sparring session.
Tucker (14-1-1, 6 KOs) makes his second ring appearance of the year and targets his fifth win in a row. The 22-year-old native of Queens, NY defeated Troy Williamson by unanimous decision last time out in April in Las Vegas.
“This man is telling everyone that he dropped me in sparring. That never happened,” Jahi Tucker said. “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.”
“Truck” Simpson (15-2, 9 KOs) also fights for the second time in 2025 and aims for his second straight victory. The 25-year-old southpaw of Baltimore, MD stopped Trevon Smith in one round in February, also at Prudential Center.
“I’m glad that he finally took the fight,” Lorenzo Simpson said. “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.”
Whether Townsel (8-2, 6 KOs) remains on the card against a replacement opponent is yet to be determined.
Atop the fight card, Vito Mielnicki Jr (20-1-1, 12 KOs) of Belleville, NJ, and Poland’s Kamil Gardzielik (19-0, 4 KOs) battle it out in a 10-rounder at middleweight. In the co-feature, Damian Knyba (15-0, 9 KOs) meets Marcin Siwy (25-0-1, 12 KOs) in an all-Polish 10-round clash at heavyweight.