The composed 32-year-old from Nottingham was too fit, too dedicated and hit too hard for the fighters he met on his rise through the ranks.

He quickly eased to the fringes of world class, before meeting The Ring's No. 7 light heavyweight Willy Hutchinson on March 28.

Suddenly, Taylor was struggling to close the range and the fighter desperately racking his brain for a way to find a foothold in their fight. He couldn’t manage it and dropped a wide unanimous decision.

When a fighter has been in charge for the vast majority of their career, that sudden loss of control can be a humbling experience.

Rather than writing the fight off as a bad day at the office or inventing a reason for the loss, Taylor (13-1, 9 KOs) took his medicine.

On Saturday he makes a dangerous return against former European champion Brad Rea (22-2, 11 KOs). DAZN will broadcast the 10-round fight from Manchester's AO Arena, preceding Joshua Buatsi-Willy Hutchinson II.

“If anything, it's probably gave me a newfound love for the art and craft of boxing,” Taylor told The Ring.

“Because I've had to look at it in a different way, my IQ's leveled up so now I'm loving the sweet science behind it even more so than before.”

The 40 minutes he spent in the ring with Hutchinson didn’t inject any doubt into Taylor’s mind. Neither did it provoke him into a root and branch review of his entire approach.

Instead, he left the ring confident he has what it takes to succeed at the highest level. He quickly got back to work with his trainer Malik Scott, and has spent much of the past eight months quickly working in California.

“One thing about myself and then also with Malik on board as well and my team in general, is that it's about me. It's about me being the best Ezra,” he said.

“It's not about my opponent, future opponents or any of that. It's about me going in there doing what I do best. What I do best is better than any other boxer out there, so it's about going in there, just enjoying yourself and embracing it.”

The defeat by Hutchinson taught Taylor that once a quality fighter has settled into their rhythm, it is very difficult to shake them out of it or change the fight's course. If Taylor is to succeed among the very best, working out how to be himself against the top operators at 175 pounds will be crucial.

“You're a smart boxer, an intelligent fighter. You're strong, sharp, explosive and a dangerous fighter. Go out there, do and be that. That's it,” he said when asked what he’s learned about himself over the past few months.

“It sounds crazy. Some people may see 10 rounds — or less in my case — as a long time. It really isn’t. A blink of an eye, it's done.”