After nearly botching first weight cut, Bryan Baker expects better results at Bellator 67

Hulking 6-foot-3 middleweights nicknamed "The Beast" aren't supposed to be able to move down a weight class. It doesn't look right. It doesn't feel right.

Bryan Baker apparently didn't get the memo.

After all, why settle on being a beast if it's possible to be some sort of "super" beast?

Not only did he get to the 170-pound limit, he blew right past it (unintentionally). The second time will have to be the charm if he intends on being in prime physical condition as he attempts to advance to the Bellator season-six welterweight tournament final.

Baker (17-3 MMA, 7-2 BFC) meets Ben Saunders (13-4-2 MMA, 4-1-0 BFC) in semifinal-round action at Bellator 67. The event takes place Friday at Casino Rama in Rama, Ontario, Canada. The main card, including Baker vs. Saunders, airs live on MTV2 following prelims on Spike.com.

Just ahead of his March opening-round bout against Carlos Alexandre Pereira at Bellator 63 is when Baker attempted to cut to welterweight for the first time.

"I didn't know how fast my body would drop the weight," Baker told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio). "I actually dropped it pretty easy. But the thing was, I kind of went the wrong way about losing so much muscle and trying to worry about the weight so much – not knowing how much my body could lose. I actually took it a little too far."

Needing to lose only three pounds the day of the weigh ins, Baker took to the sauna. But he was shocked to learn he was in the 166-167 pound range after an hour had elapsed – well beyond his 171-pound target. And it showed on fight night.

Baker did not appear to be the physical brute he originally had envisioned for himself, and he had to scratch and claw his way to a less-than-thrilling split-decision win over Pereira.

Frankly, he likely was happy just to get a win by any means necessary.

Not only had Baker been worrying about his weight-cutting, but he had been dealing with the stress that comes from moving and getting settled in new surroundings; he and his wife had also been in the process of making a permanent move from Colorado to New Mexico during that time.

The couple finally got settled in Albuquerque, and Baker officially joined the famed Jackson-Winklejohn MMA camp.

"It was just pretty much me and my wife had to really think about what I'm going to do for my career, and where my career is going, and what's going to be best for us," Baker said. "For me, to hit the next level, I just had to venture off and kind of do my own (thing), just feel how far I could reach my potential."

Baker can only get more comfortable as the days go by in his new stomping grounds. But the question remains: Will he also get more comfortable with shedding weight and adjusting to his new body type?

He's much more optimistic this time around.

"Now that I've made the weight cut once and I've kind of gotten a feel for what my body does, I'm able to fine tune some things and be the bigger, stronger 170 (pound) fighter – the reason why I went down to 170," Baker said.

He'll face a stiff test in Saunders, a former UFC fighter who is coming off a unanimous-decision victory over Raul Amaya at Bellator 63.

"I believe I took out the most experienced, probably the most physically strong opponent (Pereira) of this tournament so far," Baker said. "And now it's moving on to the next: long, lanky Ben Saunders. (It's a) different style, but I believe I match up well with him."

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