An Ohio native, Daniel Straus is a veteran of the XFO, NAAFS, Bellator FC and Shark Fights promotions. Fighting very frequently to begin his career, Straus had already competed seventeen times less than two years after turning pro, earning wins against the likes of Karen Darabedyan, Joe Pearson, Chad Hinton and Gideon Ray amongst others. He’s taken on a very strong level of competition to begin his career at lightweight, although he is capable of cutting to 145 pounds and may do so in the future.

Straus is a patient southpaw striker. He’s quick and agile on his feet, and does a nice job of mixing up his standup. He throws quick high kicks, works a stiff jab and possesses a good straight left. Straus is methodical in his approach and will look to work from the outside using his counters. Straus will look to utilize a lead right hook and overhand left, although he is careful about picking his spots on his feet. Intelligently, Straus will go to the body to change the opposition’s eye level and keep things interesting.

Early in his career Straus has shown he’s a good wrestler who will look to take his opponent to the ground. He does a good job off shooting off his punching and overall sets up his takedown attempts well. Straus is a quick athlete who’s equipped with a nice shot and solid double leg. Working from in close he shows off an impressive inside leg trip and single leg, as well as an assortment of quick throws. He’s a technical fighter on the mat who shows nice transitioning and good top control. Straus throws good hammer fists, and is patient, and effective with his ground and pound attack. Straus will need to continue working on his BJJ game as he does find himself in difficult on the ground. He’s proven difficult to submit, working patiently to free himself from compromising situations. On occasion, Straus has been able to explode with quick sweeps from the bottom although his takedown defense and guard will require work.