THE HISTORY BHOY

Chris Bungard leading the way for Scottish fighters in the MMA world

- TONY CONNELLY

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.

Making history isn’t something new to Bungard. Towards the end of 2018, the Holytown Bhoy became the first Scottish fighter to sign with American promotion giants Bellator MMA, and his rise since then has been impressive

The 31-year-old’s status in the sport has grown exponentially since signing for Bellator, and that has been recognised in him being given the top spot at this Saturday’s Bellator 240 event at the 3Arena in Dublin where he will face former lightweight champion, Brent Primus.

The fight against the American opponent has come at short notice, with Bungard stepping in to replace the injured Peter Queally.

Many top athletes in Bungard’s sport avoid fights at short notice because of the lack of preparation time both for training and in formulating a strategy towards an opponent. However, Bungard has never been hesitant to take on a fight, and he believes that fearlessness has help endear him with fans.

“I think my willingness to fight anyone and take a fight on short notice has helped label me as a sort of fans’ favourite,” said Bungard. “That’s probably the best thing you can be labelled as a fighter. You want people to come out and pay to watch you fight or stay up late to watch one of your fights. There’s big risks but with big risk come even bigger rewards.