In Matt
Schnell’s mind, his split-decision victory over Tyson Nam at
UFC on ESPN 20 wasn’t even that close.
“I felt like I was in control,” Schnell said. “It would have hurt
my feelings if they named Tyson the winner. This game is like that
sometimes. It would have hurt, but I would have been OK. I won that
fight, though.”
Schnell rebounded from a knockout loss to Alexandre
Pantoja in December 2019 thanks to crisp striking and movement.
He knew that Nam, who was coming off back-to-back KO/TKO victories,
would be headhunting throughout their flyweight bout. To his
credit, Schnell was able to avoid any devastating blows from his
opponent.
“I was doing subtle things to keep him from lining me up and
squaring me up with a good one. Most of the ones that hit me didn’t
land clean,” Schnell said. “Most of them were skimming off me. He
wasn’t quite able to line me up, but the young man’s got some
thump—no doubt about it. You can’t take it away from him. He was
definitely bringing it.
“I was trying to stay offline so I don’t eat the brunt of his right
hand, so he can’t turn his hip over on me,” Schnell continued. “I
was delivering good shots, too. I had him stepping in potholes a
couple times. It’s been over a year since I’ve been in there. I
felt fine, but I’m going to amass some momentum. I’m a serious guy
in this division.”
Nam entered UFC on ESPN 20 as the prohibitive favorite — and
Schnell believes that was for good reason. However, “Danger” may
have been overlooked simply on the basis of his last
appearance.
“Tyson had all the momentum coming into this thing. Ask the pundits
who they were picking. They were all picking Tyson Nam,”
Schnell said. “You can’t blame them because you’re only as good as
your last fight. I took an ‘L’ in my last fight and Tyson’s been
cleaning dudes’ clocks. I get it, but I’m telling you I’m one of
the best in the world. With 15 focused minutes, I can beat any man
on two legs.”
With five victories in his last six Octagon appearances, Schnell is
very much a player in the UFC’s flyweight division.
“I’m interested in fun fights,” he said. “I knew Tyson Nam
would be a fun fight. I played it pretty conservative tonight,
tried to stay on my jab and just outwork him. There are some
exciting matchups out there.”