THE incredible rise and progress of Josh Taylor provides legitimate hope among boxing fans north of the border that at long last the curse of Ken Buchanan is on the way to being broken.

It is a curse that has hung like an incubus over every young Scottish prospect operating in the lower divisions in and around lightweight. At a certain point he finds himself drawing comparison with not only the greatest fighter Scotland has every produced but one of the greatest lightweights in the history of the sport, only for his career to flounder and him failing to match initial expectations.

Yet if Taylor, inarguably the most fitting of all who’ve borne the burden of Buchanan’s legacy since the latter hung up the gloves in the early 1980s, has felt any kind of pressure in this regard, it has been strikingly absent in his performances.

On the back of an amateur career that took in the 2012 London Olympics and culminated in him taking gold at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, the 27-year-old super lightweight has walked a seemingly effortless path through the pros since turning over in 2015 under the very able hand of Shane McGuigan. 

After just 14 fights, 12 of which the fearsomely fast southpaw has concluded with a stoppage, Taylor is one of the hottest topics on both sides of the Atlantic among the boxing fraternity, touted as a future unified world champion. 

The hype surrounding him is more than deserved too, evidenced most recently in the manner in which he dispatched Ryan Martin in his opening foray in the current World Super Series Boxing tournament in Glasgow to hand the US prospect, trained by the renowned Abel Sanchez, his first loss.

Taylor went through the fancied American like a knife through butter, shattering his hitherto undefeated opponent’s confidence from the opening bell with a jab he deploys as a pneumatic drill more than conventional range finder, using it to pepper Martin’s head and body with tissue-breaking precision, speed and power.

Though those such as myself who were privileged to have witnessed Taylor’s formative years at Lochend Boxing Club in Edinburgh may well be tempted to declare that we knew all along that he was destined for great things, such a pronouncement does a grave disservice to the years of gruelling work required to lay the foundations without which any fighter’s potential cannot be maximised. 

And the credit for honing Josh’s talent during those formative years devolves to Terry McCormack, owner and head trainer at Lochend, who remains involved in his career to this day, part of Taylor’s corner under the stewardship of McGuigan. 

That McCormack remains involved in Taylor’s pro career is testament to the bond they forged during the young fighter’s amateur days. This is no surprise given that the skinny young kid who would arrive at the gym with the dream of making it in the toughest sport there has developed into a man under his amateur trainer, acquiring not only the physical fundamentals required to succeed but also and just as crucially the mental and psychological fundamentals.

With this in mind, it is possible to identify the one factor that sets Josh Taylor apart from his peers — the very same indeed that sets every great fighter there has ever been apart, including Ken Buchanan. This factor is the ability to rise to the pressure of a given fight and/or occasion and perform precisely when and where it counts. 

In Taylor’s case the inordinate pressure he came under to take the gold at the Commonwealth Games in the lead-up would have resulted in most buckling under its weight. Yet, not only did the native of Prestonpans, just outside Edinburgh, not buckle, he drew added confidence and used it to rise to the occasion. 

Similarly, as a young pro occupying the status of Scotland’s headline attraction with the slow decline of former world champion Ricky Burns and resulting end to the huge nights he once headlined, Taylor comes to the ring accompanied by a wall of expectant noise. 

Though such fervent support can be a source of strength it can also weaken a fighter’s focus and concentration, leading to him losing his discipline in his determination to please the fans, propelled forward on a wave of unbridled adrenalin and in the process making mistakes as his composure and game plan comes undone. 

That Taylor is mature enough to withstand such temptation was proved in his epic battle with former WBC champ Viktor Postol in June. His victory over the Ukrainian was and remains his toughest test to date and one he came through with the aplomb of a seasoned champion rather than emerging contender to win by unanimous decision. 

Wind things back to 2009 and my own memory of Taylor sparring the stars of Freddie Roach’s stable at Wildcard Boxing Club in Hollywood remains vivid. As part of a group of Lochend fighters and trainers, which included the aforementioned Ken Buchanan, who flew over over to experience life in the crucible of the most famous gym in boxing, Taylor was paired against the likes of phenomenal Cuban Olympic champion Guillermo Rigondeaux.

In front of a gym full to the brim with contenders, champions and former champions, the then 19-year-old again rose to the occasion and more than held his own against the Cuban. 

As for Buchanan, no sooner did he walk into Roach’s gym and unobtrusively take up position on one of the bank of chairs against one wall than he found himself flocked by well-wishers, paying him the due respect justified by a legacy of excellence in the squared circle that few have matched. The attention his presence attracted at Wildcard that day affirmed the truth that, though money may come and go, legacy and greatness are forever.

The way Josh Taylor has progressed and is progressing it is hard to resist predictions of similar greatness.