It was supposed to be Aron "The Poster Boy" Lofton's big day to finally gain the acceptance of the Edmonton crowd.
Instead he was taken down by a bar-room brawler.
The sold out crowd at the River Cree Casino was ready to embrace the
30-year-old Tulsa native when he made his third appearance on a Maximum
Fighting Championship card.

But 30-year-old Calgarian Jay Whitford stole his thunder, forcing Lofton to
submit with a head and arm choke at 3:11 of the first round.

"It's a big win," Whitford said. "He is 4-0 and he has knocked out everybody he has faced. He came out to knock me out too and couldn't do it. He came at me like a freight train, but I submitted his ass."

It was unquestionably the biggest win in Whitford's career and one he hopes
will lead to bigger things down the line.

It's a big stepping stone. I know they were eye-balling him up for the UFC,"
he said. "This could be a big opportunity for me."

 It's a far cry from where Whitford was before taking up the sport. "My coach took me away from being a bar-fighter guy. He said you might as well get paid for it. It's better to work towards becoming a champion than ending up in jail."

The main card began with a middleweight bout as Calgary's Elliot Duff (2-0
entering the fight) ignored some advice and opted to fight a more experienced opponent in Colorado's Chris Camozzi (8-2) but managed to go the distance before losing in an unanimous decision.

Red Deer's Ryan Machan continued to look strong in the ring, improving to 8-2 as he took out Victoria's Gavin Neil with a first round rear naked choke submission.