Daniel Weichel (born November 22, 1984) is a German former professional mixed martial artist who last competed in the Featherweight division for Bellator MMA.
Born and raised in Germany, Weichel originally began training in Jujutsu at the age of 14, before transitioning into Brazilian jiu-jitsu a year later.
During this time, Weichel competed on a German mixed martial arts reality show titled M.A.X.
[4] Following a rough patch where he went 3-4 (including two losses to future UFC fighters Paul Daley and Dan Hardy), Weichel joined the Russian MMA organization M-1 Global, going 5–0 on their M-1 Challengers series.
He lost the belt in his first defense in June 2012 against Musa Khamanaev at M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Rizzo.
In September 2013, it was announced that Weichel had signed a contract with Bellator MMA and would compete in their Season Ten Featherweight Tournament.
[6] Weichel fought against Matt Bessette at Bellator 114 on March 28, 2014 in the Featherweight tournament semifinals.
[10] Despite dropping Freire with a series of strikes the waning seconds of the first round, Weichel lost the fight via knockout when Freire rallied with a counter left hook early in the second round.
[15] After four consecutive victories, Weichel was expected to face newly crowned featherweight champion, Patrício Freire, in a second fight at Bellator 188 on November 16, 2017.
[17] Weichel eventually faced Patricio Freire in a rematch in the main event at Bellator 203 on July 14, 2018.
Weichel won the fight via unanimous decision as he rocked Rogers late in the opening round.
In the quarterfinals, Weichel was initially expected to face Emmanuel Sanchez in a rematch in February 2020.