A packed MMA Saturday in Edmonton, Alta. came to a close on Sunday with BTC 11, which lived up to every expectation.
Headlining the card, Matt Krayco (now 8-8-1) claimed a TKO against Tim Smith (now 14-11) with a single second left in round one of their welterweight matchup.
After battling several serious injuries that nearly ended his career, this marked Krayco's first appearance since 2018, and he described returning to competition as an incredible experience.
"It felt so good and I was seeing everything so good. Mindset is the biggest thing you'll ever have in here. If you don't have that, even the best fighter in the world won't do anything in here. And I needed it after everything with the hand break," said Krayco in an interview with MMA Empire.
"I was in the gym coaching and teaching, and just the energy of the other guys just kept me so motivated and positive and just thinking 'I'm going to be back, I'm going to be back.'"
Before locking in the Smith bout, Krayco struggled to find anyone willing to step between the ropes—an issue that predates his injury, stemming from a record that doesn't properly showcase his abilities.
Krayco declined to name particular fighters but expressed frustration with competitors who appear more focused on inflating their stats than taking real fights.
"I just want to fight and there's so many guys out there trying to pad their records to try and get into the big shows and stuff, but at the end of the day you can do that all you want but when you get to the big show and you haven't fought anyone you're going to get f**king destroyed and look like an idiot," said Krayco.
"So why not go fight tough, competitive fights? This country and most promotions are f**king terrible for putting on one-sided fights and pushing and boosting their guys. I don't care, I love being the underdog, that's when I thrive and shine the brightest, but no one wants to watch that stuff."
On the co-main event stage, Colton Cronkite (now 4-0) extended his string of first-round finishes, applying a tight guillotine choke on Chris Chapman (now 3-2) and forcing the submission in round one.
Like his previous rapid victories, Cronkite insisted these finishes aren't actively pursued—they simply happen organically.
"I guess it's just all the training; you see an opening and you take it," said Cronkite in an interview with MMA Empire.
"I got the win, luckily. I'd rather be lucky than good, so it pays off again."
With his perfect record and knack for early finishes, finding opponents may grow increasingly challenging for Cronkite down the road.
When pressed about future matchups, Cronkite wasn't interested in issuing public challenges.
"I don't call anyone out. My philosophy is martial arts is about respect and sportsmanship, so all the trash talking and callouts I want nothing to do with that," said Cronkite.
"I like guys like GSP and Wonderboy, that's kind of my attitude towards it."
