Matt Sayles (born February 21, 1994) is an American

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

who competes in the

Featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, this ...

division. A professional competitor since 2014, he has also competed with the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

(UFC), Xplode MMA,

World Series of Fighting The Professional Fighters League (PFL) is an American mixed martial arts league founded by Venture capital, venture capitalist Donn Davis in 2017 and launched in 2018, following the acquisition and restructuring of the former World Series of Fight ...

and Cage Fury.

Mixed martial arts career

Amateur career

Matt Sayles began his mixed martial arts career as an amateur, competing with Xplode MMA. He made his debut aged 18, during XFS Amateur Series 1, when he faced fellow debutante Dominick Griffen. Sayles would go on to win in the second round by a rear naked choke. His next fight was against Beau Hart for the vacant Xplode MMA Featherweight Championship, where he won the fight with a KO in the first round. His third and last amateur fight was a defense of the title, against Mike Willis, which he won by TKO.

Early career

Sayles made his professional debut with Xplode MMA in 2014, when he faced Chris Floyd. He won the fight by TKO in the first round. Fighting with various promotions during the next three years, Sayles amassed a 6-1 record, culminating in an appearance on Dana White's Contender Series 10, where won by TKO against Yazan Hajeh, which earned him an UFC contract.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Sayles made his UFC debut during

UFC 227 ''UFC 227: Dillashaw vs. Garbrandt 2'' was a mixed martial arts event that was produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship and held on August 4, 2018, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Background A UFC Bantamweight Championshi ...

when he fought

Sheymon Moraes Sheymon da Silva Moraes (born October 11, 1990) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist (MMA) who competes in the Featherweight division of Professional Fighters League. A professional mixed martial artist since 2012, Moraes has also competed in the ...

. Sayles would suffer multiple eye pokes during the fight, and ended up losing a controversial decision. Sayles next faced Kyle Nelson on May 4, 2019, at

UFC Fight Night 151 ''UFC Fight Night: Iaquinta vs. Cowboy'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 151'' or ''UFC on ESPN+ 9'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on May 4, 2019 at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontari ...

. He won the fight via submission via arm-triangle choke 3:16 into round 3. Sayles faced

Bryce Mitchell Bryce Andrew Mitchell (born October 4, 1994) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Featherweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Mitchell appeared in the reality television series '' ...

on December 7, 2019 at UFC on ESPN: Overeem vs. Rozenstruik. He lost the fight by submission from a twister in the first round. Sayles faced

Jordan Leavitt Jordan Leavitt (; born June 2, 1995) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Leavitt’s MMA journey began in high school as part of the wrestling team. Initia ...

on December 18, 2021 at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Daukaus. He lost the bout via inverted triangle choke in the second round. On January 12, 2022, it was announced that Sayles's contract was not renewed.

Post UFC

Sayles is scheduled to face Tyrek Malveaux on April 2, 2022 at XMMA 4.

Mixed martial arts record

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Christian Aguilera Christian Aguilera (born November 25, 1991) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Welterweight division. He formerly fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Growing up, Aguilera did a little bit of taekwondo an ...

, TKO (punches) , CFFC 64: Sayles vs. Aguilera , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:51 ,

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–1 , George Hickman , Decision (split) , PFC 1 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Zouk Mikael Zouk Mikael ( ar, زوق مكايل, also spelled Zuq Mikha'il or Zouk Mkayel) is a town and municipality in the Keserwan District of the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate in Lebanon. Its inhabitants are predominantly Melkite and Maronite Catholics. The ...

, Lebanon , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Ryan Lang , KO (punch) , RFA 38: Moisés vs. Emmers , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:59 ,

Costa Mesa, California Costa Mesa (; Spanish for "Table Coast") is a city in Orange County, California. Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to an urban area including part of the South Coast Plaza–John Wa ...

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Dylan Stanfield , TKO (punches) , Xplode Fight Series: Fire , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:46 ,

Valley Center, California Valley Center is a census-designated place (CDP) in northern San Diego County, California. The population was 9,277 at the 2010 census. History Valley Center was the site of the capture of the largest California Grizzly Bear in history. In 1866, ...

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Amateur mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 3-0 , Mike Willis , TKO (punches) , Xplode Fight Series - Vengeance , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:50 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2-0 , Beau Hart , KO (punch) , Xplode Fight Series - Eclipse , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:36 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1-0 , Dominick Griffen , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Xplode Amateur Fight Series - XAFS 1: Revolution , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:32 ,

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External links

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sayles, Matt 1994 births American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists from California People from Chula Vista, California Featherweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Living people