Ricky Burns will attempt to defend his WBO lightweight title for the fifth time on Saturday evening when he faces highly-rated American Terence Crawford at the SECC Arena in Glasgow.
The Scot will be competing in his 10th successive world title bout as he looks to prolong his reign at the top of the division, but he goes into the encounter as the underdog against an opponent who has been tipped to dominate at 135lbs.
Below, Sports Mole assesses whether Burns has the ability to retain his title in front of his adoring home supporters.
Ricky Burns
Ahead of his clash with Jose Gonzalez in May 2013, Burns had been tipped to unify the lightweight division, but after struggling to victory against the Puerto Rican, which came due to a hand injury to his opponent, the signs were there that Burns was beginning to encounter difficulties to hold on to his belt.
His match with Raymundo Beltran was seen as a bout to silence the doubters ahead of bigger fights in the future, but after breaking his jaw in the second round, Burns was dominated by the Mexican, and after being dropped in the eighth, there was genuine astonishment from the Scot's own supporters that he was awarded a draw.
After undergoing surgery on his jaw, efforts were made by Burns's promoter Eddie Hearn to hand the South American a deserved rematch, but Top Rank, who represent both Beltran and Crawford, opted to turn down the offer of a second fight to allow Crawford to take up the mandatory opportunity that he had secured for himself with three wins in 2013.
There was confidence within Burns's camp that he could right a lot of wrongs against Beltran, but a meeting with Crawford represents a significant step up in class for the 30-year-old after two unconvincing outings over the past nine months.
There is no denying that Burns displayed incredible levels of bravery to fight for 30 minutes with a broken jaw in his last bout, but while he will need that again against Crawford, he needs to produce a skilled display to have any chance of gaining a decision against the American.
Burns's knockout record is one of the worst of any current champion in any division, and while it wouldn't be a surprise if he gets through the 12 rounds, he will have to find a way of winning seven rounds against an opponent who has barely lost any in his past three fights.
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Terence Crawford
The emergence of Terence Crawford on the world stage is one that has long been anticipated since he eased his way through the first 19 bouts of his professional career.
The opening 14 wins were secured inside the first four rounds, and while the quick successes have dried up slightly with the improvement of boxers placed in front of him, there is no denying that the slick 26-year-old is a genuine world-class operator.
Crawford began 2013 with a lop-sided triumph over Breidis Prescott, the conqueror of Amir Khan in 2008, before taking care of Alejandro Sanabria and Andrey Klimov to move into a mandatory position with the WBO.
The Nebraska-based fighter isn't ranked with any of the other governing bodies, but a win over Burns has the potential to quickly catapult him into unification bouts in an attempt to clean up the division.
Crawford has yet to step into the ring with anyone possessing the experience of Burns, but Saturday's fight could represent a changing of the guard and if he can cope with his first trip outside of the United States, then the sky is the limit for the former amateur prodigy.
Prediction
Burns will go into Saturday's bout with the desire to prove himself after barely holding onto his world strap during his last fight, but it is going to take more than desire to get the better of Crawford.
While there aren't many standout names on the record of the American, he has the hand speed and power to dominate Burns in his own back yard, and the Scot will have to apply an appropriate gameplan from the first bell if he is going to have any prolonged joy against the 26-year-old.
Burns could make a fast start to the fight, but Crawford's class is likely to get the better of the 30-year-old, who could find himself struggling to take the contest into the closing rounds if his repaired jaw takes too much punishment.
Darren Plant
