On July 14, Daniel Weichel met Patricio Freire in the headlining bout of Bellator 203. It was Weichel’s second time facing Freire. In both, the promotion’s featherweight title was on the line. In both, Weichel wasn’t the fighter who got his hand raised at the end.

When Weichel (39-10 MMA, 8-2 BMMA) makes his return to the cage, about four months after his most recent failed title bid, it won’t be as a featherweight. Rather, Weichel’s meeting with Goiti Yamauchi (22-4 MMA, 8-3 BMMA) next week at Bellator 210 will be at lightweight, where Weichel hasn’t competed since early 2013.

After two failed title bids, the only setbacks of his five-year Bellator career, one would understand if Weichel had simply decided it was time for a change of scenery. But the reason for the switch-up, it turns out, was more straightforward than that.

“To be honest, in the first place, it was one thing that I told my manager, that I wanted to fight more often,” Weichel told MMAjunkie. “I said it doesn’t matter to me, at 145, 155, heavyweight, I don’t know. I want to fight more often than I did last year.”

Unless something goes wrong between now and Nov. 30, that’s one goal accomplished. Weichel only fought once in 2017, against John Teixeira, before a first attempted rematch with Freire fell through because of an injury to the champ. He’ll get to fight twice in 2018 – and hopes to make it three, four, or “maybe five times” in the next year.

For Weichel, the 145-pound division where he’s had all of his Bellator appointments is still more natural and “where I feel very very good.” But he has no problem continuing on at 155 if that’s what it takes.

“The first goal is to fight,” Weichel said. “(To) be a fighter and to be able to stay very busy.”

That doesn’t mean Weichel has abandoned the idea of being a Bellator champion, of course. That has always been the overall goal, he says. In fact, should the promotion choose to offer him a trilogy with champ “Pitbull” Freire, Weichel’s response is what you’d expect.

“I would take it right away,” Weichel said.

But that’s as far into hypotheticals as Weichel will go. Whether it’s looking at his future or reflecting about his past, the former title challenger seems uninterested in engaging in “what if” thinking.

Take his most recent failed title bid, for instance.

Having prepared for so long for his rematch with Freire, only to see it narrowly slip through his fingers, wasn’t easy. But clearly Weichel didn’t waste too much time sulking. “I always try to look forward,” he said, and after spending some time with his family, Weichel got back on the mat as soon as he was physically ready to go.

“I had Patricio in my head for over a year-and-a-half,” Weichel said. “It was a tough one, but I’m a fighter, you know. I try to learn my lessons out of fights. Whether it’s a win or it’s a loss, and I keep on going. Because my passion is for this sport of MMA and I love to do it. I love to practice, I love to fight.”

As for said lessons?

“I know that I took my time a little bit too much, especially in the first round, and I know that if I’d put more pressure right from the beginning, it would have changed the fight,” Weichel said. “So this will definitely be one thing. Especially in a close fight like that.

“I know it was two rounds for me, two rounds for him, and it was up to the first round to make a difference. Now I know that it doesn’t matter if it’s the first round or the last round, you have to always make sure that you won this round clearly.”

In training, that has meant a conscious effort to instill this sense of urgency and make it second nature. As for what it will mean in practice, we’ll just have to wait and see what happens at WinStar World Casino and Resort in Thackerville, Oklahoma.

Having followed Yamauchi for quite some time, specifically since they both competed in Bellator’s featherweight tournament, Weichel is respectful of his opponent’s skill set, “but I also think that I’m the better, well rounded fighter and that I have all the tools to beat him.”

Either way, Weichel sees a quality matchup, with the potential for a “very, very good fight.” The numbers back up his impression. Although Yamauchi is also coming off a loss, it’s not like losing to ex-champion Michael Chandler is that big of a dent in his record.

Before that, Yamauchi was on a three-fight winning streak, all via first-round submission. Even after the setback, his credentials were still solid enough to grant him a meeting with 155-pound contender Patricky Freire, until an injury forced Yamauchi out on short-notice.

Between both Weichel and Yamauchi’s resumes, it was a bit of a surprise to some that the lightweight bout will be relegated to Bellator’s preliminary card. But, for the ever-practical Weichel, making the drop from headliner to the prelims doesn’t seem like that much of an issue.

“I don’t really care,” Weichel said. “Like I said before, my main concern is to stay active, and I don’t care if it’s on the prelims or the main card. Definitely, this will be a war. This will be a great fight. And I think we will put the main event on the prelims card.”

For more on Bellator 210, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.