THE promotional puff for Nathaniel Collins’ double title fight in Glasgow this evening has labelled him “Scottish boxing’s best kept secret” but it’s not a tag he wants to embrace.

In an era when YouTube fly-by-nights and over-the-hill one-time icons can command global attention and pay-per-view broadcast fortunes, Collins points towards his undefeated journey to this juncture and wonders what he has to do to get even a glimmer of wider recognition.

Victory over James Beech at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel will see the Bearsden fighter take ownership of both the British and Commonwealth featherweight belts in just his 12th fight.

The contest was originally slated to appear on the undercard of Josh Taylor’s world title rematch with Jack Catterall at the Hydro but when that fell through Collins’ manager, Sam Kynoch, moved to retain home advantage by putting on his own show.

Kynoch courted both BBC Scotland and STV but neither, so far, has picked up the opportunity to give Collins the wider platform he deserves. The 26 year-old can still walk around Glasgow without being recognised by anyone beyond the hardcore boxing fanbase and he wonders just what he has to do to make a name for himself.

“This is a British and Commonwealth title fight,” he says. “No offence but it shouldn’t just be on a hotel show. I’m very grateful that it’s getting put on by Sam and I’m getting a chance to fight for it up here but it’s two massive accolades up for grabs. You look around and there’s not really anyone else fighting under the radar for a British and Commonwealth title.

“A British title fight was always a big thing [on television] on a Friday or Saturday night and was such a big event. It was pure boxing and that if someone got that belt you knew you were going somewhere.

“Everyone in my weight division like Leigh Wood and Josh Warrington have come up through that tough route and gone on to win world titles. So it’s not a small thing. It’s just a shame really and in another life or for someone in another position it might be different. I just have to take it on the chin and move on.

“Ideally it would have been on Josh Taylor’s undercard if the Catterall rematch had gone ahead as that would have been such a big stage. I’d have got the chance to show what I could do to people all around the world rather than just here. But it is what it is. It’s a stepping stone to bigger things hopefully.”

Collins’ previous fight last May was at the Hydro when he was given a unanimous points decision against highly-fancied Welsh prospect Jacob Robinson. That didn’t catapult the man known as The Nightmare to fame and fortune and he’s wondering whether success tonight will finally give him his big breakthrough.

“It’s disappointing,” he adds of the lack of accolades. “Is it motivation to keep going? I don’t know. I’ve done big fights at the Hydro. Jacob Robinson the last time was meant to be a big upset people were saying.

“And that was going to be my coming out fight. And now people are saying it’s this one. And if I win this, then what happens? It can’t keep going like this. They can’t keep ignoring me once I’ve got both these belts.

“I’ve been training together with Regan Glackin for years. He’s just a bit less experienced than me from the amateurs. He won recently to go 10-0 and when I was at that stage I had won the Celtic and the Commonwealth titles.

“It’s just funny how different fighters get to where they want to go at a different pace. So to have done what I’ve done this quickly isn’t that common. Which makes it even worse that I’m under the radar!”

The dream for Collins would be to one day headline his own show at Scotland’s biggest arena, with houses emptying throughout Glasgow and beyond to come and see him in action.

“Sam had talked about keeping this one at the Hydro when Josh’s fight was cancelled and was asking how many [fans] I thought I would take if I were headlining,” he adds. “And it’s a funny one as I don’t know. It would be good to just think that if I get both these belts, people are backing me and the city is backing me, then that would be a possibility.

“It’s a good feeling to be in your city and everybody knows who you are and wants to come out to see you. You want to move away from having to promote myself and sell tickets. It would be great to get to that stage.”