Falkirk fighter Monty Ogilvie says pressure is on Celtic title fight opponent Nathaniel Collins

The 27-year-old will take on fellow Scot Nathaniel Collins at Paisley Lagoon Centre on October 5 with the vacant Celtic featherweight title at stake.

Both boxers are undefeated as pros. Ogilvie has seven wins out of seven since his debut in March 2017 while Collins (22) has won all five of his fights since stepping up from the amateur ranks after fighting for Scotland at last year’s Commonwealth Games.

The two know each other well but any friendship will be put on the back burner when they go head to head in the autumn.

Ogilvie had been due to face Jordan McCorry for the title in April, but that fight was called off when McCorry landed a shot at a British title.

But now he has another chance, one he is determined to take.

He said: “I’m looking forward to it. It’s a true 50-50 fight with another top Scottish prospect.

“I kind of knew the fight was coming after the fight with Jordan fell through. We’ve been kind of circling each other for a wee while and I know he’s getting fast-tracked by his promoter because of his amateur pedigree.

“But I’ve earned my shot the hard way and it’ll be a good fight, good experience.

“I know him fairly well. He’s a nice fellow, I get on quite well with him. I never boxed him in the amateurs but I’ve sparred with him a couple of times over the years. He’s a southpaw and very skilful so it will be a a hard fight.

“But I feel him and his camp are overlooking me a bit, trying to fast-track him. I get on well with him personally, but on social media he’s maybe bigging himself up a bit and maybe putting pressure on himself. The pressure’s all on him, it’s not really on me.

“We’ve both kind of skipped over the Scottish title, maybe because Lewis Paulin, the current holder, is almost world class.

“But the Celtic title’s a better opportunity in a sense because whoever wins moves on to British and Commonwealth title contention. It’s a proper step up for both of us.”

The Paisley venue is one Ogilvie has won at in the past, so he’s happy to fight there and confident the potential step up in distance to 10 rounds for a title fight won’t be an issue.

He said: “I boxed in April but picked up a bit of an injury in the run-up to that fight.

“I injured my elbow so I’ve really not been able to punch.

“I had my first spar back after eight weeks on Friday with Kash Farooq and did eight rounds pretty comfortably.

“I’ve always been better over the distance and Nathaniel, although a quality operator, still has quite an amateur style. He’s very flashy when he’s fighting journeymen but I don’t know if you can keep that style up for 10 rounds, bouncing in and out, and I think the longer distance will favour me.”

As ever Monty - who trains at Urban Guerillas in Falkirk and Golden Gloves in Kilsyth - appreciates the long-time backing of sponsors Trend Barbers of Denny and Patricks Butchers in Camelon. But he is also on the lookout for new sponsors - anyone interested can contact him via Facebook.