THE ability to handle pressure is a fundamental part of any sport for an elite athlete and, in that regard, mixed martial artist Chris Bungard has a lot in common with his beloved Celtic.

The lightweight fighter will make history this weekend when he becomes the first Scottish fighter to headline a Bellator card, and he can think of few places better to do so than in Dublin while wearing the Celtic crest on his shorts.

As a lifelong Celtic fan, Bungard knows the club’s history and its Irish roots. Headlining a fight card at Paradise would be a dream come true for Bungard, but competing in Dublin with his customary Celtic crest on his shorts comes a close second.

Seeing different cities through his line of work is one of many perks which Bungard appreciates but it’s not just work that takes him on the road. The Holytown fighter has travelled throughout Europe following Celtic most of his life.

“You know what it’s like growing up, playing football and wearing a Celtic strip all the time,” he said in this week’s Celtic View. “My uncle John took me to my first game in 1999 and Celtic beat Hearts 3-0 at home. I always remember that game because Henrik Larsson scored a hat-trick.

“Growing up, Henrik was my hero. It’s just what you did when you were a wee boy, you played football and watched football, and it was everything. You just fall in love with it because you’re brought up into it.

“Since then, I go to all the home and away games, travelling throughout Europe watching Celtic, it’s been brilliant. I still go to every home and away game. I go on my supporters’ bus or with my friend Kieran.

“When I’m in a fight camp I try to avoid the bus on those days. I was in Romania and I was going to be in Copenhagen as well but this fight came up so I can’t make it anymore. I’ll just wait until we get by Copenhagen and then make the next round.

“I’ve been on some amazing away trips, though. The Monchengladbach game was a great trip, Ajax was pretty good and Paris was good, even though we lost. The first minute was good on that trip, anyway!

“When I’m at the games I can feel the support from people around me asking for pictures or wanting to talk to me. I also get people tweeting me saying what a way to half my fanbase by openly being such a big Celtic supporter.

“There’s highs and low but that’s just part and parcel of it. If I’m out there being a Celtic fan publically I know what city where in and what it can be like but I don’t let any of that bother me.”

Watching Hoops in the stands alongside other Celtic supporters has been a lifelong pursuit for

For the full interview with Chris Bungard, see this week’s Celtic View, out now.

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MMA fighter Chris Bungard in this week’s Celtic View