IF Josh Taylor was feeling somewhat underappreciated heading into the biggest sporting weekend of his life, then he would surely have been happier with the reaction that followed it.

Those who had set their alarms to catch the Scot’s bout with Jose Ramirez live from Las Vegas at half two in the morning were the first to acknowledge the magnitude of his achievement as the Prestonpans southpaw became the first British boxer to take on the mantle of undisputed world champion in the four-belt era and only the fifth male boxer to do so ever.

By the time the early birds were joined by those who had elected to rise at a more civilised hour, the trickle of congratulations was quickly growing into a torrent and then a tsunami of adulation that then engulfed most of the rest of the day’s sporting news cycle. And rightly so.

Placed in a football context, this wasn’t just the equivalent of Scotland going to the Euros. This was the same as Steve Clarke’s men qualifying and then going on to win the whole thing. And you can just imagine how the nation would react were that to come to pass this summer.

Taylor has benefited from two things that have allowed him to become undisputed world champion after just 18 professional fights.

One was the World Boxing Super Series (WBSS), an innovative knock-out style competition that brought together most of the key players in the super-lightweight division without the usual contractual haggling and posturing that often gets in the way of big fights getting made.

Taylor was named in the eight-man tournament that began in late 2018, giving him a clear route to aim at two world titles.

Defeating Ryan Martin in the quarter-finals gave him a shot at the first – the IBF belt – which he took against Ivan Baranchyk in Glasgow.

He then added a second by defeating No.1 seed Regis Prograis in the WBSS final in London, a victory that earned him both the Muhammad Ali trophy and the American’s WBA belt.

The second thing that went in his favour on the road to becoming king of the division was meeting a like-minded foe in Ramirez.

While others with two world titles to their name might have held off and continued to pad their record with victories against lesser opponents, both Taylor and the Mexican-American were willing to risk everything to gain everything.

That both are part of the Top Rank stable again took any politics out of the move, with ESPN also already on board to broadcast the bout throughout North America.

It evidently gnawed at Taylor before the fight that no major UK broadcaster had shown sufficient interest, a surprise given BT Sport’s collaborative partnership with ESPN.

Again, there are possible mitigating factors behind that. Ramirez was a unified world champion but he isn’t a “name” among casual boxing fans in the way that Terence Crawford and Manny Pacquiao both are.

If Taylor were to move up to welterweight to fight either of those pair, then broadcasters will be throwing money at him for the right to screen it.

Ramirez is also not a natural showman, not a trash talker or someone who contributes more to the boxing hype machine than he is obligated to.

When it did start to get a bit personal in the build-up to Saturday’s fight, it was Taylor who was attempting to crank it up, admitting later it was all just part of an attempt to throw his opponent off guard.

Broadcasters tend to reflect public opinion with their choices and perhaps there is a large element of English boxing fans who simply can’t bring themselves to get behind a chippy, patriotic Scot, as Taylor unashamedly is.

He also doesn’t have an Eddie Hearn or a Frank Warren to repeatedly talk him up as they do with their own fighters, with Taylor now promoted by 89 year-old Bob Arum, a legendary figure in boxing circles but not a regular on Sky Sports News or in the British press.

Just like Andy Murray before him, Taylor has had to almost go over and beyond just to grudgingly receive Middle England’s seal of approval.

The 30 year-old had predicted people couldn’t continue to ignore him if he came through Ramirez and that has already proved to be the case.

In the immediate aftermath, however, Taylor was less fussed about courting new admirers and more interested in thanking those who have helped carry him this far.

Those include his family and friends, his fiancée Danielle, and his hero and mentor Ken Buchanan, the last Scot to be declared undisputed world champion 50 years ago.

Buchanan is 75 years old now and not in the best of health, but Taylor has not forgotten how important a role his predecessor played in sending him on his way.

“Ken, what an inspiration you’ve been since I was 18 and walked in the doors at Lochend Boxing Club,” he said.

“My coach back then Terry [McCormack] is in Vegas with me and has been like a dad to me. But Ken gave me bits of advice on how to live my life.

“He told me how to train and dedicate myself to my sport. He saw me as an amateur hitting the bags and said I could be a world champion.

“He’s been proven right and I can’t wait to go back and say “I’m just like you, champ”.”

As for the future, Taylor is remaining open-minded. Crawford, who put on a clinical performance to take Ricky Burns’ lightweight world title from him on a memorable night in Glasgow in 2014, would be a massive draw home or away but there will be other opportunities, too.

“We’ll see what comes my way,” added Taylor, munching pizza and already looking forward to what would have been the first of many celebratory beers.

“We won’t be short of options and every fight is going to be huge. We’ll ride the wave.

“I’d like to go up to 147 pounds and chase a real big fight like Crawford. I won’t call him out. He’s a great fighter but two undisputed fighters at 147 lbs would be amazing.

“I’ve not boxed in my home city since Miguel Vasquez at Ingliston out by the airport a few years ago so I’d love to take a big fight back to Scotland.

“Now is the time to get Edinburgh Castle or Easter Road. I’d love to fight at the castle. It would be iconic.

“There are big fights and good fighters out there. But I’ll fight anybody in this game.”

He’s already shown as much. They can’t ignore him any longer.