Jahi Tucker talks a ton of trash, but he’s humble enough to know when he’s desperate.

On June 21, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, Tucker stood across the ring from Lorenzo Simpson. On paper, the 25-year-old appeared to be the best opponent he faced in his young career.

It was Tucker (15-1-1, 6 KOs) who continued to get the better of the exchanges in the middleweight bout. In the end, the 22-year-old stood tall as referee Eric Dali held his hand for a unanimous-decision victory on the Vito Mielnicki Jr.-Kamil Gardzielik undercard.

For Tucker, the win was everything he needed. Now he can focus on other things. Mainly, getting his hands on a title. He knows he isn’t particularly close, but he’s confident that he’s going in the right direction.

“I definitely feel like I’m getting closer,” Tucker told several reporters recently. “I’m a go talk it over with my team. We’re gonna take it one fight at a time.”

The pathway to a title shot is a difficult one, but it’s attainable. Janibek Alimkhanuly, who holds the middleweight division's IBF and WBO titles, is under the same promotional banner as Tucker, Top Rank. Matchups against Carlos Adames (WBC) and Erislandy Lara (WBA) are considered far more difficult to make.

The New York native isn’t ranked high enough in any of the four sanctioning bodies to demand a shot at the crown just yet. A few more notable fights against big-time names could change that. So while beating Simpson didn’t get him where he wants to be, he’s at least one step closer.

“I feel like this definitely catapulted me.”