Matt Schnell (fighter)


Matthew Christopher Schnell is an American mixed martial arts fighter, currently fighting for the UFC and is the former flyweight champion of the Legacy Fighting Alliance. As of December 21, 2019, he is #9 in the UFC flyweight rankings.

Career in MMA

Caged

In 2012, Schnell was one of the young MMA fighters featured in Caged - an MTV reality television series. The show focused on four prospective MMA fighters in small-town Louisiana. Schnell was one of the two fighters on the show to later fight professionally.

Legacy Fighting Championship

Schnell joined Legacy Fighting Championship in 2012 and went 9–2 in various promotions before joining the cast for The Ultimate Fighter, season 24.

The Ultimate Fighter: Tournament of Champions

On May 11, 2016, the UFC announced that the 16 contestants for would be flyweight champion fighters from various organizations around the world, with the winner being expected to have a chance to fight for the flyweight title against Demetrious Johnson. Schnell was announced as part of the cast in July and selected for Team Cejudo.
In the first round on the show, Schnell seeded at #6 faced #11 Matt Rizzo and defeated him in the second round via a triangle choke submission. Schnell advanced to the quarterfinals and faced #3 seed Tim Elliott. He lost the fight via first-round submission due to a bulldog choke.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

After his stint on The Ultimate Fighter, Schnell was chosen as one of the cast mates to get a contract. He fought Rob Font in the bantamweight division at and lost via TKO in the first round.
Schnell returned to the flyweight division and faced Hector Sandoval at. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round.
Schnell next fought on October 7, 2017 at UFC 216 against Marco Beltrán. He won the fight by unanimous decision.
Schnell faced Naoki Inoue on June 23, 2018 at UFC Fight Night 132. He won the fight via split decision.
Schnell faced Louis Smolka in a bantamweight bout on March 9, 2019 at UFC on ESPN+ 4. He won the fight via a triangle submission in the first round.
Schnell faced Jordan Espinosa on August 3, 2019 at UFC on ESPN 5. He won the fight via a triangle choke submission in the first round. The win also earned Schnell his first Performance of the Night bonus award.
Schnell faced Alexandre Pantoja on December 21, 2019 at UFC on ESPN+ 23. He lost the fight via first round knockout.
Schnell is expected to face Tyson Nam on September 12, 2020 at UFC Fight Night 178.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts exhibition record