Matt Schnell

Matthew Christopher Schnell (born January 15, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Flyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Schnell formerly competed for Legacy Fighting Alliance, where he is a former Legacy Fighting Alliance Flyweight Champion. As of June 18, 2024, he is #12 in the UFC flyweight rankings.

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, alongside Tony Kelley, 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 of The Ultimate Fighter, season 24.

The Ultimate Fighter: Tournament of Champions
On May 11, 2016, the UFC announced that the 16 contestants for The Ultimate Fighter: Tournament of Champions 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. Schnell fought Rob Font in the bantamweight division at The Ultimate Fighter: Tournament of Champions Finale. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round.

Schnell returned to the flyweight division and faced Hector Sandoval on April 22, 2017, at UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Lobov. 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 Fight Night 146. He won the fight via a triangle choke submission in the first round.

As the first fight of his new, four-fight contract, 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 Fight Night 165. He lost the fight via first-round knockout.

Schnell was expected to face Tyson Nam on September 12, 2020 at UFC Fight Night 183. However, Schnell was removed from the fight on the day of the event's weigh-in for health issues related to his weight cut. As a result, the fight was cancelled. The bout with Nam was first rescheduled to UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Neal, on December 19, 2020, and then to UFC on ESPN: Chiesa vs. Magny, on January 20, 2021. He won the bout by split decision.

As the first fight of his new multi-fight contract, Schnell was scheduled to meet Alex Perez May 15, 2021 at UFC 262. However, Perez pulled out of the fight for undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Rogério Bontorin. At the weigh ins, Bontorin weighed in at 137 pounds, 1 pound over the bantamweight non-title fight limit. The bout proceeded at catchweight and Bontorin was fined 20% of his individual purse, which went to Schnell. Schnell lost the bout via unanimous decision.

The bout with Perez was rescheduled and was expected to take place on August 28, 2021 at UFC on ESPN: Barboza vs. Chikadze. However, for undisclosed reason the bout was moved to UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs. Till. However, the bout was yet again postponed for unknown reasons to UFC 269. At the weigh-ins Alex Perez weighed in at 126.25 pounds, a quarter-pound over the flyweight non-title fight limit. Shortly after the weigh-ins, officials had announced that the bout had been cancelled due Schnell was forced to withdraw from the event due to a medical issue. The pair was rescheduled to UFC 271 on February 12, 2022. At weigh-ins, Perez came in at 128 pounds and did not attempt to try again, resulting in Matt Schnell refusing to take the catchweight bout and the bout being scrapped.

Schnell faced Brandon Royval on May 7, 2022 at UFC 274. He lost the back-and-forth fight via a guillotine choke submission in the first round. The fight also won both men the Fight of the Night bonus award.

Schnell faced Su Mudaerji on July 16, 2022 at UFC on ABC 3. After getting hit and wobbled by multiple flush punches and elbow strikes, Schnell gained top position and came back to win the bout via technical submission with a triangle choke in the second round. This win earned both fighters the Fight of the Night bonus award.

Schnell faced Matheus Nicolau on December 3, 2022 at UFC on ESPN 42. He lost the bout via knockout in the second round.

Schnell was scheduled to face David Dvořák on June 10, 2023 at UFC 289. However, Schnell pulled out due to injury and was replaced by Stephen Erceg.

Schnell was scheduled to face Steve Erceg on November 11, 2023, at UFC 295. However, Schnell withdrew from the bout due to unknown reasons and was replaced by Alessandro Costa. He was rescheduled to face Erceg on March 2, 2024, at UFC Fight Night 238. Schnell suffered his second consecutive knockout and lost the bout in the second round from a left-hook.

Schnell is scheduled to face Alessandro Costa on September 7, 2024 at UFC Fight Night 244.

Personal life
Schnell and his wife Morgan have a daughter (born 2020).

Championships and accomplishments

 * Ultimate Fighting Championship
 * Performance of the Night (One time) vs. Jordan Espinosa
 * Fight of the Night (Two times) vs. Brandon Royval and Su Mudaerji
 * Legacy Fighting Alliance
 * Legacy FC Flyweight champion (one time; former)

Mixed martial arts exhibition record

 * Date given is the air date of the episode. The actual dates of the fight are not released by the UFC