Josh Taylor taking a risk going up against Viktor Postol

But the Cyclone Promotions chief believes it is a risk worth taking if it propels the Scot to his first ever world title shot.

Prestonpans puncher Taylor faces the ultra-tough Ukrainian in Glasgow on Saturday night in a final eliminator for Jose Ramirez’s WBC world super-lightweight belt.

Postol has only ever been beaten once before in his professional career when Terence Crawford ripped the WBC world super-lightweight belt from his hands back in 2016.

But McGuigan warned that the 34-year-old still possesses the threat that has seen him rack up 12 knock-out wins from 29 previous successes.

However, with Taylor riding on a wave of momentum similar to the one which propelled Ricky Burns to national fame, the promoter justified his decision to pair his fighter with such a dangerous foe by insisting victory will fast-track the 27-year-old to stardom.

“In order to get attention you have to perform, but you also have to perform against the right guy,” he said. “That’s why we took this risk.

“Postol is the number one contender in the world, Josh is number two.

“We didn’t have to fight this guy but we decided we would do it because we want to fight for the title and we want to fight for it as expeditiously as possible.

“That can only happen if you take risks and fight the best and that’s exactly what we’re ~doing.

“There’s no b******t, no messing around, no frills. Taylor is all about substance. There is so much hype and spin in this business but Taylor is pure talent, the genuine article but he’s up against someone in Victor Postol who is also a genuine article.”

The hype surrounding former Commonwealth champion Taylor has exploded in the year since he defeated Londoner Ohara Davies via a one-sided seventh-round stoppage.

But while McGuigan remains convinced his man will prevail once again, he admits the WBC Silver champion is in for his toughest test yet.

He said: “We never consider any defeats our opponents have because Josh is going to beat them all anyway. I promise you, he’ll beat them all.

“However, this will be a severe test for him in every sense as this guy has a good chin, no-one has stopped him and only one man has beaten him and he’s up there as one of the top three pound-for-pound fighters in the world right now.

“So we have a job on our hands on Saturday night – but Taylor will win.

“He has never failed to perform when the pressure is on. He is a lad who responds to a pressure-cooker scenario.

“This is the last obstacle he has to overcome to get a shot at a world title. Josh wants to win a world title, defend it multiple times and really make a name for himself but we need to get over this guy first.

“He’s no Ohara Davies. This guy is the real McCoy.

“We know it’s going to be 12 hard rounds, flat out, but I believe Josh has the power to take this guy out.”