Nine years of hard work have led Ekow Essuman to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.

On November 15, 36-year-old Essuman (22-1, 8 KOs) gets to perform on the biggest stage of his career. His 12-round welterweight fight with Jack Catterall (31-2, 13 KOs) will provide the chief support to the eagerly awaited middleweight rematch between Chris Eubank Jnr and Conor Benn.

The Ring: Unfinished Business will be streamed exclusively on DAZN pay-per-view.

After relieving Chris Jenkins of the British and Commonwealth welterweight titles in July 2021, Essuman went on a tear. He made four defences of his belts before putting in a lacklustre display, losing the belts to Harry Scarff in November 2023.

Essuman used what initially seemed like a shattering defeat as fuel for a major comeback. After two exciting wins, he was selected as the opponent for what would prove to be Josh Taylor’s final fight.

Rather than accepting a role as a bit part player in Taylor’s story, Essuman earned a unanimous decision victory over the former undisputed junior welterweight champion.

The win earned Essuman the widespread recognition he felt he deserved years ago and also saw him installed as Ring Magazine's No. 10 ranked welterweight. Now, he gets the chance to solidify that status against former 140-pound world title challenger Catterall.

Last fight: Essuman travelled to Glasgow, Scotland and scored a career-best victory over Josh Taylor on May 24. Unfazed by a partisan crowd, the nine-year pro got better as his first step into world class went on.

Essuman overcame a tricky start but stuck resolutely to his game plan. He took control of a competitive fight over the second half and battled to a deserved unanimous decision win.

Odds: Essuman is a reasonably priced 13/8 outsider with BET365 (+162.5).

How does Essuman win: Essuman needs to shake Catterall out of his deliberate, controlled rhythm as quickly as possible. He is unlikely to do that by boxing on the back foot and forcing Catterall to make the fight.

Essuman will need to box aggressively but carefully. He may not carry concussive power but, in the past, his relentless style and habit of getting stronger the longer the fight goes has broken his opponents mentally if not physically.

Catterall is a cool, calm operator and unlikely to fold but Essuman's best chance is to get as close as possible and force the southpaw to match his workrate.

What it means if he wins: Many will unfairly downplay Essuman’s victory over Taylor by claiming that he beat a faded version of the once fearsome 'Tartan Tornado'. Beating Catterall would confirm him as a significant factor at 147 pounds.

Although Essuman holds top 15 rankings with the WBA and IBF, he is most highly ranked by the WBO who place him at No. 3. Beating Catterall - sitting at No. 8 by the sanctioning body - would edge him closer to a shot at Brian Norman Jr's world title.

Norman, of course, defends his belt against two-division world champion Devin Haney as part of a stacked Ring IV card, which takes place in Saudi Arabia on November 22.

What they're saying: "For me, it's win this fight and then I'm challenging for world titles in the next one.

"When we were going through the terms it had to make sense in terms of my world title path and those things are being put in there.

"So I'm excited about this fight and the event as a whole. Jack Catterall is just another brick in the road that I need to kick to the side and I will kick to the side. It's going to be a good year following on from the win in May." - Ekow Essuman talking to The Ring.

TV/Stream: DAZN Pay-Per-View; $59.99 in the U.S. (11.30 a.m. ET); £24.99 in the UK (4.30 p.m. GMT).