MONTY OGILVIE will step back into the boxing ring in front of the television cameras tomorrow night a changed man. Since his last fight against Nathaniel Collins in October, the 28 year-old has moved house, switched gyms, and paired up with a new trainer. Most significantly, however, he will do so with an altered mindset, too.

The fight with Collins was the biggest of his career to date, a 50:50 shot at the Celtic featherweight title. Ogilvie can now admit with hindsight that he wasn’t mentally prepared for it.

“Not in a good head space,” is how the Killin boxer puts it. On the morning of the fight, despite having trained well and feeling physically strong, he found himself crying as he prepared to head out the door.

Given that admission, it is probably not a surprise that he lost both the fight and his unbeaten record that night in Paisley.

“I’m not sure if I would have beat Nathaniel on my best day but I wouldn’t have got beaten like that,” he admits during a break from his day job as a skilled labourer.

“I wasn’t in a good head space and really under-performed in that fight. I was that devastated afterwards that I wasn’t sure if I would ever box again.

“I wasn’t in the right frame of mind mentally for it. I can’t even put my finger on it as training had gone really well and physically I was in great shape.

“But in the week of the fight I was feeling pretty low. I couldn’t shake that negative feeling. And then I woke up on the day of the fight and before I left the house I burst into tears for no reason. I wasn’t there mentally that day.”

Most boxers hate having the “Oh” on their record taken away when they lose their first fight. For Ogilvie, though, it served as a source of relief after a tough time dealing with growing expectations on the back of nine straight professional wins.

“In a strange way I’m glad to have lost my 0,” the Kynoch Boxing fighter added. “I always work really hard at boxing and I like to think I’m a warrior. But I don’t think I’m super talented.

“So in a way having that 0 brings a lot of pressure. It’s hard when you’ve got everyone around you telling you how good you are. And in your head you’re not convinced that you are as good as they’re telling you. You do question yourself. Now in a strange way that pressure is off. It’s a relief.”

He has made significant changes in his personal and working lives since then, moving in with partner Beth in Fife and switching from Kilsyth to start working with trainer Paul Kean Sr in Dundee’s Skyaxe gym.

“Nothing against Kilsyth as that was a great gym and they were brilliant with me but life just takes you in different directions sometimes,” he added. “This is proving to be a brilliant environment for me to keep improving and learning.

“It’s been a good partnership with Paul so far. I’m improving all the time. I’m boxing a bit more. I used to just try to fight everyone but I’m using my head a bit more.”

He will get the chance to showcase those new skills to a live BT Sport television audience when he takes on undefeated Louie Lynn on the Frank Warren card.

 “When I got offered this one I immediately thought it would be a good chance to redeem myself,” added Ogilvie, who thanked sponsors Joseph Boxing, Puncture Guard, 2 Wheel Developments, Trend Barbers and Pawsitive Canine Services for sticking by him during a difficult time.

“When I was 14 years old and had my first amateur fight I used to dream about fighting on the telly.

“Normally before a fight I get stressed out but this is a dream come true for me. No matter how it goes, 10 years from now when I’ve got kids I can show them the time I fought live on TV. So that’s going to be a great experience.

“I’ve done my research and style-wise it’s a good match-up for me. We both come for a fight so it should make for an exciting show. If I do well then hopefully there will be a chance to get on other shows like this in future.”