Michael Conlan accepts he might polarise opinion, and that some people probably think he's a "mad bigot".
But he insists his critics have got it wrong when it comes to his boxing and beliefs.
The Belfast boxer will bid to become WBA world featherweight champion on March 12 in Nottingham.
Champion Leigh Wood will stand in the way of Conlan and a first world belt, and the realisation of a lifelong dream.
The 30-year-old's career has been punctuated by hype, fanfare, success and controversy.
He has built up a passionate, loyal support along the way, but Conlan admits being a "proud Irishman" has probably cost him fans along the way.
“I would say so," he told the News Ireland podcast The Rocky Road.
"People think I’m this mad bigot which is f****** crazy. They think I’m someone who hates Protestants and stuff which is completely wrong.
“I’m just a proud Irishman. I love my country, and if they asked me do I want a United Ireland I would say, ‘Yes, 100 per cent’.
“I’ve always been honest and up front about who I am. I wouldn’t be true to myself if I did hide it. Has it cost me fans — 100 per cent.
“People get the wrong idea of what Irishness is and how one person can express their Irishness.
“I’m not saying I agree with a war and everything that happened, I’m just saying that I’m an Irishman and a proud one."
One flashpoint came in 2019 when Conlan headlined Madison Square Garden Theatre in New York on St Patrick's Day.
His ring walk song that night was the Wolfe Tones’ Celtic Symphony which contains the lyric ‘Ooh Ahh Up The Ra’ .
Conlan was met with a wave of criticism following the fight, with politicians including then First Minister Arlene Foster among those to question the song choice.
“I came out to Celtic Symphony and I got a backlash," Conlan said.
"I didn’t come out to Celtic Symphony because it has ‘IRA’ in it — I came out to it because I knew the atmosphere it would bring in the audience.
“And it’s not like it’s saying ‘up the IRA’ — it’s talking about ‘graffiti on the wall’ and it’s saying ‘ooh, ahh, up the RA’. It’s the graffiti on the wall that’s saying it.
“But I know how it can be took, it can be misconstrued.
"It wasn’t meant to cause any offence and if I was from a different part of Ireland, from the south, and I came out to that, not one person would say a thing.
“There’s a kid from Scotland who comes out to it every fight, a Celtic fan, and nobody bats an eyelid.”
Conlan says he has taken a sabbatical from social media in the build-up to the Wood fight.
He is keen to avoid any negativity as he plots the biggest win of his career to date.
“I’ve seen loads about me online, yeah, and it’s partly the reason why I came off social media. It’s not nice to read those things," he added.
“You don’t need any negative impacts in terms of preparation for something of the magnitude of a world title fight.
“It didn’t really affect me or anything but you still see it and subconsciously it affects you somehow."
You can check out the full episode of the podcast HERE
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