On Friday, Pat Curran challenges Daniel Straus for the featherweight title he once held in the main event of Bellator 112.

There’s one man, though, who won’t be rooting for him, and that’s Patricio Freire. “Pitbull” believes he should be stepping in the cage against Straus, not Curran, and his frustration with his current standing with the promotion has been threatening to bubble over for a while now.

Freire (21-2 MMA, 9-2 BMMA) this past November won Bellator’s Season 9 featherweight tournament, his second tourney victory. The win came just two weeks after Straus upset Curran to capture the belt. With his TKO win over Justin Wilcox, Freire assumed he’d be next in line after Season 8 winner Magomedrasul “Frodo” Khasbulaev.

Instead, Bellator ordered up the Straus-Curran rematch that takes place Friday at Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, Ind., not far from Curran’s home in Chicago’s north suburbs.

“They told me that I didn’t lose my shot at the title, that I simply needed to wait until Curran had his rematch,” Freire said. “That answer irritated me even more, since I was supposed to have the next title shot, especially since ‘Frodo’ is still having visa problems. Instead, it’s Curran that’s getting the shot.”

Freire fought Curran for the title once before and lost a close split decision. In order to get that shot, he beat Straus by unanimous decision. For Freire, the logic doesn’t add up, leaving him feeling slighted.

“When I faced Curran, when he held the belt, we had a very competitive fight which I lost via split decision,” Freire said. “I asked for a rematch, but instead I was informed I would be in a new tournament. After I won a standalone fight, followed by three victories in the tournament, which added up to three knockouts in four fights, I earned my chance again. But they still wouldn’t give me my shot. That was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

“Pitbull” said he even has gone so far as to ask out of his Bellator deal. But given recent high-profile and sometimes messy free-agency situations with the likes of Eddie Alvarez and Ben Askren, Freire knows he might have to play out his deal, even if reluctantly, knowing he’s not getting the opportunities he expected, or at least in the time frame he expected them to come in.

“Due to this feeling of disrespect, I did ask that if Bellator doesn’t wish me to be the champion, then they should release me from my contract,” he said. “But everyone knows that these contractual matters are complicated and I’m supposed to fulfill my commitments. They reached out to us to start a dialog. One thing I can say for sure: I will only remain at Bellator if I feel respected. In any area of my life, I refuse to be somewhere when I’m not treated with respect. I know my value. I know what I’ve done, what I can do, and what I can become. At the very least, I expect that my goals be respected.”

Freire said he believes some level of Bellator – he’s not sure who – wants Curran to be the champion, and that’s why he’ll be rooting for Straus.

“I am rooting for Straus,” Freire said. “I think it will be a shock to those who want Curran to be champion. I don’t know if that’s (Bellator CEO) Bjorn (Rebney), Bellator or (Bellator parent company) Viacom. But I hope Straus spoils the plan of whoever doesn’t want him to win. I have nothing personally against Pat Curran. I think he’s a good person.”

Regardless, though, he just wants his shot at the winner, and maybe that will start to mend whatever might be broken between him and the promotion.

“This is a very uncomfortable situation,” he said. “I’ve always considered the Bellator staff as my family outside Brazil. I’ve always defended the organization. That’s why I am disappointed. And nothing I’ve said is a lie. I am sad because I know I helped then reach their current level of success. With 11 fights in the organization, and several knockouts to my name, I have helped them grown. I’m not happy with how things are between us now.”

For the latest on Bellator 112, stay tuned to the MMA Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Patricio Freire)