CR Exclusive Interview with Daniel Straus

Daniel Straus receiving the $100,000 check after winning Bellator's featherweight tournament.
Photo via MMAWeekly.com

The second best featherweight in Bellator could very well be the best featherweight in Bellator. Daniel Straus, a huge and strong 145er, is the next to challenge current Bellator champion, Pat Curran. With an extremely impressive record of 21-4 including wins over Marlon Sandro, Mike Corey, and Nazareno Malagarie, Straus could very well be the man to take the belt away from Curran.

Despite Curran holding a win over Straus in the past, these are two completely different fighters since that past meeting.

With their second meeting now scheduled for April of this year, Straus sat down with us for an interview.

Check it out:

CR: Going into your fight with Pat Curran in April, what are your plans when it comes to your training camp; what will you be focusing on the most?

Daniel: I sat down with the coaches and I have been studying tape with them and I think, personally, I like the stand up game with him. He has really good boxing but with my stuff, I think I can exploit some of the things that he is weak at. When I get in the gym with my coaches, we have been working really hard on my movement, standing and basically my fundamentals.

CR: How do you think your previous loss to Curran will affect this fight for the both of you when it comes to mentality and preparation?

Daniel: I think the loss helps motivate me and to be honest I don't really think about it. It doesn't really bother me. I don't grieve on it and I don't go back to it as far as looking at my career. It is a loss to me and I've moved on. I learned from that loss. You can tell from my record. After that loss to Pat Curran it did something to me. So, coming into this fight it is just the same thing. I lost to him when I previously fought him. I knew I'd fight him again. Obviously everyone knows he hits hard but I am not scared to get hit by him. So, that’s actually an advantage for me, its keeps me more motivated.

Cr: Great and also, who do you predict will win the current featherweight tournament: Shamalaev or Rad Martinez?

Daniel: Honestly man, it’s really a tossup. Somebody asked me that before and it’s really hard to answer. You know Martinez, a lot of guys count him out but as you can see that in every fight he has ever fought in, he is always in there. He is the guy to beat. As far as Shamalaev, he’s just as tough. He looks like a killer and fights like a killer. So, it’s just going to be a tough fight for the both of them.

CR: Yea it should be a great fight. So, you to be improving each fight, what have you been doing to be able to improve like that?

Daniel: Really just focusing on my flaws. Focus on what I'm good at and what I'm not good at. Going back to the drawing board. It’s not myself that makes me better. It’s my teammates and my coaches. I get in the gym I work hard with my teammates. And when I'm not doing something right I am instructed to do it differently. I will then try and work on that more and more. And I think it has been showing through in my fights.

CR: Absolutely. Also, what will your goals be after you win the title?

                                                                                                 

Daniel: My goal after winning the title is to defend the title and continue to defend the title. I don't necessarily have any goals as far as like with any other organization. Right now, I am just focusing on winning fights. Right now, this is where I'm at and this is where I want to win my fights at. For the future I just see myself as a multiple time championship winner and holding on to the belt in Bellator.

CR: What do you think will go through your mind if you win the title?

Daniel: I did it. You know, I did it. This fight is really important for me. I've come a long way in my career. It’s been only a few years but it has come full circle for me. You know it’s a big stage. It’s also getting bigger with Spike and everything so winning this fight just lets me know to myself that I've made it.

CR: Wow that's really awesome. What strategy do you believe Curran will use against you?

Daniel: I think he will definitely want to pick me apart on the feet. I think he will want to use his boxing advantage. I think he will want to use it for the fact that he's knocked me out before. An advantage that maybe he thinks I will keep that in my head; which really doesn't bother me. I think he'll also use the fact that he's very good on the ground and up against the cage. So, I think he will definitely try and exploit those for sure.

CR: When you finished Alvin Robinson, did it feel good to quiet all of the critics who have complained saying that you don't finish fights?

Daniel: To be honest, no man. It really didn't. I stand behind how I feel, you know what I mean?

CR: Yea for sure.

Daniel: Don't get me wrong, I think a lot of people get what I say wrong. People take me as "Oh he's not a guy that wants to finish" or "he's not looking for the finish"; which is absolutely not true. I'm looking for that knockout. I want that knockout, I want that submission. It feels good to get it but I'm not going to change how I fight for the next man's view. I believe that if I can break a man by going all 15 or 25 minutes then that's what I’m going to do to win my fight. This game is a strategy game. It’s not just a barbaric game, its strategy. If that’s my strategy and it works for me, then that's what I'm going to continue to do.

CR: Yea, sounds very reasonable. Why change what is making you so successful. Anyway, we wish you a ton of luck in your fight against Pat.

Daniel: Thanks a lot man.

Make sure to follow Daniel on Twitter @DanielStraus and support him in his upcoming title bid against Pat Curran on April 4^th.