Life
Matt is a 6-time New Zealand’s Strongest Man and a World’s Strongest Man finalist from 2023 and 2024. He has risen to prominence following a superb 2023 season and a superb 4th place finish at the 2024 World’s Strongest Man finals. He is renowned for his deadlifting ability and is considered to be one of the word’s very best in that discipline.
As a 16 and 17-year-old Matt competed as a sprinter on the track, focusing mainly on the 100m and 200m. He suffered from very painful shin splints which caused him to put his running on hold and instead found himself moving towards the gym…
Athletics’ loss has proven to be Strongman’s gain as the Kiwi has now established himself in the sports’ top tier internationally. When not putting in the hours in the gym, Matt works full time as a shift supervisor at MacDonalds.
Career
Matt first began competing in 2013 at local shows and broke some national records. From then on, he was hooked and made his first impression internationally at the 2016 Arnold Amateur World Championships, where he finished 3rd, behind winner Zach Hadge and second placed Evgeny Markov.
Competing twice at the Arnold Australia over the next few years, and picking up New Zealand’s Strongest Man titles, covid put his progress on hold for two years and it wasn’t until 2022 that Matt would make his presence felt on the international scene. Competing at the Official Strongman Games in Daytona Beach, Florida, he finished in 3rd place behind South Africa’s Jaco Schoonwinkel and winner, Spenser Remick of the USA. He won the Deadlift for Reps and the Atlas Stones, and by placing in the top 3 secured an invite to the 2023 World’s Strongest Man finals.
In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, he came through his heat to qualify for his first World’s Strongest Man final – an astonishing achievement for a debutant! He would eventually finish in 9th place in the final. A few months later he picked up his 6th New Zealand’s Strongest Man title and shortly after received an invite to Giants Live’s World Tour Finals where he would finish runner-up.
The 2024 World’s Strongest Man contest provided the New Zealander with yet another chance to prove his capabilities and he was able to grasp that opportunity with both hands. Competing regularly in 2024, Mat achieved some mixed results and was able to place 4th at the Strongman Classic, and 7th, most recently, at the Rogue Invitational in November.
Best Title
After making his debut at World’s Strongest Man at the 2023 contest, Matt made tremendous progress over the next year and was able to achieve an incredible 4th place finish in 2024. Having seen off Aivars Šmaukstelis to win his heat, Matt performed well in both the Conan’s Wheel and Atlas Stones but secured his best event result in the Deadlift for Reps, where he beat all-comers to record 8-reps with the 374kg/825b barbell.
Competition Results
World’s Strongest Man: 2025 – 5th place in Group 2, 2024 – 4th place, 2023 – 9th place
Giants Live
2025 Strongman Open: 3rd place
2024 USA Strongman Championships: 6th place
2024 Strongman Classic: 4th place
2023 World Tour Finals: Runner-up
2024 Rogue Invitational: 7th place
2024 Shaw Classic: 12th place
2022 Official Strongman Games: 3rd place
New Zealand’s Strongest Man: 2023 – winner, 6x champion
Arnold Australia: 2018 – 8th place, 2017 – 7th place
2016 Arnold Amateur Strongman World Championships: 3rd place
Best Lifts
Competition lifts:
Log Lift: 200kg/441lb
Deadlift: 454kg/1,001lb
Axle Press: 180kg/397lb
Dumbbell Press: 125kg/276lb
Media
On social media, Matt can be found on Instagram: @raggstrongman. On YouTube there are several videos featuring him, including recent profiles and collaborations following his performance at World’s. Big Loz Official has profiled him in his Meet the Athletes series, as have SBD, and both Graham Hicks and Mitchell Hooper have posted videos with him.
