Bellator's Rebney: Pat Curran-Patricio 'Pitbull' next, but Straus lined up for winner

Bjorn Rebney took some heat for Friday’s main event at Bellator 112. But after the show, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of vindication.

Rebney, Bellator’s president and CEO, got some grief from fans – and from one notable fighter in the center – when he made a featherweight title rematch between Daniel Straus and former champ Pat Curran.

The criticism was that Curran should not have been next in line after losing his belt to Straus at Bellator 106 this past fall. Instead, the next title challenger should have been tournament winner Patricio Freire, since visa issues continue to keep Magomedrasul Khasbulaev from getting into the country.

But with Friday’s fight at The Venue at Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, Ind., there were few who could doubt the Curran-Straus trilogy fight was one that worked. The two battled back and forth deep into the fifth round – and the scorecards would later show that no matter what happened, the fight was headed for a split decision – before Curran pulled off a Hail Mary rear-naked choke with just 14 seconds left in the fight.

“There were a lot of questions as to why I decided to make this rematch, and I had a lot of reasons in my head,” Rebney said. “But hopefully, this justifies the decision-making process, because that was an unbelievable fight. That was just electrifying.”

But the Bellator boss acknowledge that “Pitbull” Freire will now get his shot after being asked to wait for Curran to get an immediate rematch.

The good news for Straus? He knows he’ll be next in line after that.

“I’m sure the first question anyone would raise would be rematch, because the fight was razor-thin and I think the latest finish in a five-round fight in Bellator history,” Rebney said. “But what I will say is this: Patricio ‘Pitbull’ deserves his world title fight. Patricio ‘Pitbull’ will get his world title fight next against Pat Curran. The winner of that fight for the world title will face (Straus).”

There was no timetable given for the Curran-Freire title fight, though Curran likely will be given a decently sized medical suspension for a cut near his right eye.

The turnaround time may be too tight for Curran to fight Freire on Bellator’s first pay-per-view, which is set for May 17. But with the success of Curran-Straus III, and the potential for Curran-Straus IV down the road, putting that fight on a pay-per-view may be enticing. Still, Rebney wouldn’t commit to that, saying he was sure he would be more than happy with the numbers Friday’s show on Spike TV.

“WIth that kind of performance, I’d love to see these guys on a premium-level event,” he said. “But I’m confident the numbers on Spike are going to go through the roof this week. We had great numbers two weeks ago, great numbers last week, but I can’t imagine they’re going to go anywhere but up this week.”

For complete coverage of Bellator 112, stay tuned to the MMA Events section of the site.

(Pictured: Pat Curran)