Delusion isn’t the pathway to success. Not in business, not in life, and certainly not in boxing.

Serhii Bohachuk is on the verge of a title shot. The junior middleweight is ranked No. 1 in the WBC and could find himself standing across the ring from Sebastian Fundora any day now.

Being inactive is never a good thing, but there are times when a fighter would opt for it instead of risking their position. Fundora, though, is freakishly tall (6-foot-5 1/2) and possesses rare traits at 154. Well, outside of Mykal Fox.

Since the fringe contender is similar in height, Bohachuk believed that a fight with him made sense to get a similar look. On Saturday night at Commerce (Calif.) Casino, the two got it on in front of a jam-packed crowd.

During those 10 rounds, Bohachuk (26-2, 24 KOs) enjoyed large chunks of success, but he didn’t have a signature performance. So while he did win, and fairly easily, he’ll head back to the drawing board and work on his game.

“I learned from this fight that I need to be more faster, more smarter and more movement,” Bohachuk said to Not Just Boxing.

There’s a long list of issues Bohachuk believes he can fix. Fox didn’t engage much offensively, but his perpetual footwork didn’t allow the Ukrainian to set his feet and fire.

Additionally, Bohachuk felt sluggish and listless out there. It didn’t cost him against Fox, but in matchups against Fundora, Xander Zayas or even in a rematch against Vergil Ortiz Jr., Bohachuk may not be so lucky.

To avoid those issues going forward, he’ll have to up his punch output and velocity of his overall shots.

“I need more speed,” Bohachuk said. “I can’t be waiting on the punch.”