RIO DE JANEIRO -- Eduardo Dantas will finally return to the Bellator cage.

Initially slated to meet Mike Richman at March’s Bellator 135, the former bantamweight champion will co-headline Friday’s Bellator 137 against "The Marine", and he wasn’t happy when he heard that the fight was pushed back.

"At first I was upset, but that’s part of the game," Dantas told MMAFighting.com. "He got hurt. It happens. But there’s always a good side, and I had more time to prepare for this fight. I’m more than ready and excited. I’m really motivated. You will see a new ‘Dudu’ at Bellator 137.

"It’s going to be a great fight," he continued. "He likes to stand and trade, he’s a professional boxer, but I also like to stand and fight. It’s going to be MMA against boxing. We’ll see how that goes."

According to Dantas, Bellator officials promised him a shot at the 135-pound gold with a win over Richman.

"It’s a done deal," he said. "I will win and fight for the title next. I will go for the belt after this fight."

"Dudu" lost the bantamweight title in October after a 25-minute bout with Joe Warren, and Marcos Galvao took the title from Warren in March.

Dantas and Galvao are former training partners and fought for the gold in 2013. "Dudu" finished "Loro" in the second round, and Galvao decided to leave Nova Uniao after the knockout loss.

"I’m not thinking about that or ‘Loro’," Dantas said. "I’m going there to get what is mine. It doesn’t matter who has it, I’m going there to win the belt. I’m not thinking about that fight anymore. We will meet again and we will fight, exactly like the first one."

The friendship between Dantas and Galvao is not the same after the bout, but "Dudu" says he was happy to watch him submit Warren at Bellator 135.

"I was really happy that he won," Dantas said. "He deserves that, he has a long history in this sport. ‘Loro’ is a warrior, he never stopped believing in his dream and came out with that amazing submission. He deserved that."