Fighters explaining the circumstances around a loss is commonplace in MMA. Emanuel Newton’s reasoning for his most recent defeat might be a new one, though.

Newton, the former Bellator light heavyweight champion who suffered a first-round submission loss to Phil Davis in September, said the mistake of having sex just hours before the event was a partial contributor to the loss. A rib injury suffered early in the fight was also a factor, he said.

Newton (25-9-1 MMA, 8-3 BMMA) said the pre-fight friskiness hurt his tenacity and “edge” going into the fight. He learned an important lesson from that, he said, which he expects to benefit him going into his Feb. 19 rematch with Linton Vassell (15-5 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) at Bellator 149.

“I had sex like three or four hours before the fight, which was stupid,” Newton told MMAjunkie. “Once again, I was getting caught up in that (mentality that) certain things couldn’t touch me when I have to understand that I am human and I do have to train hard and I can’t be going out and making stupid mistakes. Then the first takedown of the fight that Phil got on me, I popped my rib. It just wasn’t meant for me to win that fight because I learned so much.

“(Having sex) definitely took away my hips. My trainer Antonio (McKee), even the day before when we were doing the open workouts I was kicking him off his feet with spinning back kicks. The first takedown Phil got on me was when I threw a spinning back kick and he powered through it and he got that body lock and that’s when I popped my rib. But right when we were warming up my trainer looked at me and said, ‘What happened to that power?’ Lesson learned. It happened for a bigger reason and I did learn a lesson and get a deeper understanding of myself.”

Bellator 149 takes place at Houston’s Toyota Center. Newton vs. Vassell airs on the Spike-televised main card following prelims on MMAjunkie.

The loss to Davis came at a crucial time in Newton’s career. He lost the Bellator 205-pound title to Liam McGeary just one fight prior and was hoping to jump right by into a title fight by winning the Bellator 142 one-night tournament. Instead, he lost quickly to Davis in the opening round to put consecutive defeats on his record for the first time since 2009.

Newton said he’s not one to panic after a losing streak. He actually started his career with back-to-back losses but managed to overcome the low point and become champion in a major organization. He said takes away important lessons from each unsuccessful performance and said that’s no different now.

“My whole career has been like this: lose two or three, then win eight, lose two and win seven,” Newton said. “It’s just been my whole fighting career. I’m closer to God, getting more into my scriptures and getting a deeper understanding of who we truly are and what I truly am.

“If I had to fight the fight again and could have had victory, I wouldn’t do it because I learnt so much more. Everything happens for a reason so I’m just going to stand with that. I’m going to go in there knowing I put the time in the gym with the strength and the conditioning and know that I’m with the Bible. I’ve given my life back to Jesus Christ in a deeper and more spiritual way.”

In what way will Newton be a changed fighter? He said it will be primarily from a mental standpoint. It’s no secret Newton is a unique character who thinks and acts in a way that’s entirely his own. He said he’s comfortable with that, but at the same time realized he must taper some of that down and keep his career based in reality, as well.

“I thought I was Mr. Invincible, but I got what I needed to come to the state of fighter that I am now,” Newton said. “I’m not going into this fight to mess around like when I fought Phil. I’m a fighter and a warrior. I can’t go into a mindset of, ‘Hey, this guy is my friend and we’re just showing off our talents.’ I need to go in there with the mindset of, ‘I need to take this guy’s head off because he’s trying to take a win from me.’ I need to have a more aggressive mentality and a more aggressive attitude. Everything I do has to be full power, full speed ahead and I’m here to (expletive) you up and take your head off.”

Newton said he feels at his best with his new outlook. He beat Vassell once before in a fight where he claims to have trained for just two weeks and was “smoking weed the day before I flew out” to the event. Newton still managed to submit Vassell in the fifth round of their fight at Bellator 130 in November 2014, and he said he plans to upstage that performance at Bellator 149 and take his first step back to the championship.

“I had to come to the understanding that I’m not a superhero and I can’t just do what I want,” Newton said. “I have to go hard in the gym, I have to evolve with my style and my training tactics. I did that this time and everything is looking good. I want to be the champion again. I want to get back to where I was, but this time in a more spectacular fashion. That’s what I’m working at one fight at a time. My goal is to be the champion and go in there and smash any opponent who steps in the ring with me.”

For more on Bellator 149, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.