Pat Curran vs. Daniel Straus title fight joins Bellator 106 pay-per-view

Bellator MMA’s pay-per-view debut now has a third title fight.

Officials today announced featherweight champion Pat Curran (19-4 MMA, 9-1 BMMA) will rematch Daniel Straus (21-4 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) at the event.

Bellator 106 takes place Nov. 2 at Long Beach Arena in California. Former UFC champions and recent Bellator signees Tito Ortiz and Quinton Jackson meet in the headliner.

Curran is ranked No. 5 and Straus is No. 8 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie.com MMA featherweight rankings.

“Pat Curran’s one of the best mixed martial artists we have in the game today,” Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney stated. “Before breaking his hand, Straus was a fixture in the top 10 rankings with a huge amount of talent. Curran vs. Straus is a fight I’ve wanted to see since Daniel won the tournament a year ago last May. This should be an epic world title fight and our pay-per-view provides the perfect stage.”

Curran looks for his seventh straight win and his third consecutive title defense. Prior to joining Bellator in 2010, he picked up a knockout win over Straus at XFO 29 in 2009. Although most of the Illinois-based fighter’s wins previously came via decision earlier in his career, three of his past four (including a recent submission victory over Shahbulat Shamhalaev) have come via stoppage.

Straus, meanwhile, earned his title shot by winning a Season 6 tournament. Although the title fight has been delayed due to scheduling, injury and legal issues, the Ohio native now looks for his first major title and his sixth consecutive win. In fact, in his past 18 fights, his only loss has come via decision to Patricio “Pitbull” Freire in a Season 4 tournament final.

The latest Bellator 106 card includes:

• Quinton Jackson vs. Tito Ortiz
• Champ Michael Chandler vs. Eddie Alvarez – for lightweight title
• Champ Pat Curran vs. Daniel Straus – for featherweight title
• Muhammed Lawal vs. Emanuel Newton – for interim light heavyweight title

For more on “Bellator 106: Rampage vs. Tito,” stay tuned to the MMA Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Pat Curran)