Home
Search
Register
Log in
ZuffaKiller- Posts : 4178
Join date : 2011-11-19
Legacy FC 14's Matt Schnell anxious to ditch MTV 'reality star' label, prove he's legit
Tue Sep 11, 2012 4:33 pm
Matt Schnell wants people to know he's no flash in the proverbial pan.
"Danger" got his 15 minutes of fame on the MTV documentary-reality show "Caged," which chronicled fighters trying to get noticed in Louisiana. Now he wants to extend that 15 minutes well into the foreseeable future.
Schnell (0-0) on Friday makes his pro MMA debut at Legacy FC 14, and wants to change some minds.
Schnell meets fellow debuting pro Ryan Hollis (0-0) on the show, which takes place at Houston's Arena Theater. The main card, including Schnell-Hollis, airs on AXS TV (formerly HDNet).
"I'm very excited for it and I've trained hard for it," Schnell recently told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio).
That training takes place in Lafayette, La., with UFC vets Tim Credeur and Dustin Poirier. And though the drive to Houston will almost feel like a home fight for Schnell in his debut, he believes the experience he gets training with fighters the caliber of Credeur and Poirier will have him well prepared for Hollis – and anyone else who comes after him.
Schnell wants to make a successful debut, of course. But he also welcomes the opportunity to silence any critics who think he was a made-for-TV fighter who doesn't have a shot at taking this thing to the next level.
"There are a lot of people who think I'm just a kid who was on a TV show," Schnell said." But ask anybody I've trained with – and I've trained with some high-level people – I'm legit."
That isn't to say Schnell isn't appreciative of the opportunities being on MTV may have afforded him, though.
"The show came along and it's been a blessing for me," he said. "But if the show had never come along, I would have had made it eventually just because I'm a skilled fighter. I work hard and I'm dedicated to what I do."
Making the leap from the amateur ranks – where he was 10-2 – to the pros is pressure, for sure. And jumping right into a high-level regional promotion for his first fight, and having it on AXS TV, is a little added stress.
But Schnell said that's not going to be a problem.
"There's always been pressure on me my whole career," he said. "Things have never been easy on me, where I come from. I've always been the underdog. And I welcome that criticism that I'm a reality TV star.
"I think I'll open a lot of people's eyes come Sept. 14, and I think a lot of people will be pleasantly surprised by how well-rounded my skill set is and how capable I am of being a good fighter."
http://mmajunkie.com/news/30578/video-legacy-fc-14s-matt-schnell-anxious-to-ditch-mtv-reality-star-label-prove-hes-legit.mma
"Danger" got his 15 minutes of fame on the MTV documentary-reality show "Caged," which chronicled fighters trying to get noticed in Louisiana. Now he wants to extend that 15 minutes well into the foreseeable future.
Schnell (0-0) on Friday makes his pro MMA debut at Legacy FC 14, and wants to change some minds.
Schnell meets fellow debuting pro Ryan Hollis (0-0) on the show, which takes place at Houston's Arena Theater. The main card, including Schnell-Hollis, airs on AXS TV (formerly HDNet).
"I'm very excited for it and I've trained hard for it," Schnell recently told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio).
That training takes place in Lafayette, La., with UFC vets Tim Credeur and Dustin Poirier. And though the drive to Houston will almost feel like a home fight for Schnell in his debut, he believes the experience he gets training with fighters the caliber of Credeur and Poirier will have him well prepared for Hollis – and anyone else who comes after him.
Schnell wants to make a successful debut, of course. But he also welcomes the opportunity to silence any critics who think he was a made-for-TV fighter who doesn't have a shot at taking this thing to the next level.
"There are a lot of people who think I'm just a kid who was on a TV show," Schnell said." But ask anybody I've trained with – and I've trained with some high-level people – I'm legit."
That isn't to say Schnell isn't appreciative of the opportunities being on MTV may have afforded him, though.
"The show came along and it's been a blessing for me," he said. "But if the show had never come along, I would have had made it eventually just because I'm a skilled fighter. I work hard and I'm dedicated to what I do."
Making the leap from the amateur ranks – where he was 10-2 – to the pros is pressure, for sure. And jumping right into a high-level regional promotion for his first fight, and having it on AXS TV, is a little added stress.
But Schnell said that's not going to be a problem.
"There's always been pressure on me my whole career," he said. "Things have never been easy on me, where I come from. I've always been the underdog. And I welcome that criticism that I'm a reality TV star.
"I think I'll open a lot of people's eyes come Sept. 14, and I think a lot of people will be pleasantly surprised by how well-rounded my skill set is and how capable I am of being a good fighter."
http://mmajunkie.com/news/30578/video-legacy-fc-14s-matt-schnell-anxious-to-ditch-mtv-reality-star-label-prove-hes-legit.mma
Permissions in this forum:
You cannot reply to topics in this forum