It's time to find out just how much Taylor has left to give

It has been a hard and short road for Josh Taylor in the boxing business, but on Saturday in Glasgow, he will end a long break when he meets Ekow Essuman. It is a fight to see how much Taylor has left.

- STEVE BUNCE

The Scot is now 34, and was only 28 when he won his first world title in just his 15th fight. He was matched hard against unbeaten men, fast-tracked in testing fights from the very start. He was an Olympian, he was not a kid; he wanted to move quickly.

In 2021, he travelled alone to Las Vegas under the dismal canopy of Covid, and behind closed doors, he became the undisputed champion at super-lightweight. He remains the only British boxer to hold all the titles in the four-belt era.

However, the Covid restrictions denied him his real night of glory and history at the Virgin property that night, where he dropped the unbeaten Jose Ramirez twice. It would have been an unforgettable fight at home in front of a capacity crowd and not just a few dozen lucky, barely audible punters in the lifeless echo chamber of another Covid-hit arena.

At the time, there was bold talk of a move to welterweight and a super-fight with Terence Crawford. This was not fantasy; this was discussed by Bob Arum, who promoted the pair at the time.