Five-time WKA world champion and creator of the Sideswipe Performance Team, Matthew Mullins, 25, has been practicing martial arts for more than a decade. Honing his skills and studying under legendary martial arts instructor John Sharkey at Sharkey's Karate Studio in Naperville, Illinois, Matt took to the competition circuit and quickly excelled in all divisions. A third-degree black belt in Shorei-ryu, Matt is also a six-time North American Sport Karate Association (NASKA) national champion and a five-time American Karate Association (AKA) national champion.

Matt is one of the pioneers of extreme martial arts, which, as Matt explains "is the next phase in the evolution of martial arts, combining traditional styles with more unusual and entertaining moves such as acrobatic kicks, spins and flips."

His impact on Extreme Martial Arts caused the Discovery Channel to feature Matt's talents on the Discovery Channel documentary, xma: Xtreme Martial Arts. This documentary showcases the amazing grace and fluidity of the human form and also studies the latest scientific analysis, motion-capture techniques and bio-mechanics of body movement. XMA: Extreme Martial Arts is now one of the best-selling DVDs in the Discovery catalog. Matt has been performing in TV, film, live productions and commercials for the last five years. He has recently completed lead roles in the soon to be released feature films Adventures of Johnny Tao and Bloodfist 2050.

Still active in the martial art community, Matt has just released his first book: Matt Mullins' Basic Tricks. He also travels across the country, hosting exclusive training camps at karate schools. Matt's passion for his art has become an inspiration to many aspiring future-generation martial artists. Many of the performers on the Sideswipe Performance Team are former or current students of Matt's.