Undefeated in his first three fights in the UFC, flyweight Jeff Molina has had a rough few months.
Molina (11-2), as part of the 2020 promotion Dana White’s Contenders Series And debuted the following year, has been plagued by the James Krause gambling scandal in recent months.
Now suspended due to an ongoing investigation, Molina has more trouble to worry about after a private video leaked earlier this week.
Cageside Press has not verified the content of the videos in question, and generally does not report on the private lives of fighters, promoters or officials unless deemed newsworthy, or if the individual in question chooses to discuss the topic.
On Friday, Molina broke his silence on the matter, posting a statement on social media confirming the authenticity of the video and announcing that he is bisexual.
👇👇👇 pic.twitter.com/zho13QHXeT
— Jeff Molina (@jmolina_125) March 17, 2023
“Okay…this fucking sucks,” Molina wrote, adding “TLDR: I’m bisexual.”
In a more detailed explanation of the leaked video, Molina explained that his statement “was not the way I wanted to do it, but the opportunity to do it when I was ready was taken away. Keeping my dating life a secret. I’ve been dating girls my whole life, been on the wrestling team all through high school, pursued MMA all through college, and even after fulfilling part of my dream and getting into the UFC, I’ve suppressed my feelings.”
“I’m a very macho guy, that brotherly banter and sense of humor has always been my face. Thinking of my friends, teammates and [people] I look up to seeing me differently, let alone being treated differently because of things out of my control, things that I just can’t understand. In a sport like this, most of the fans are homophobic jerks, and at this point in my career, I don’t see myself doing that. I want to be known for my skills and the dedication of the past 11 years of my life, not for ‘double UFC fighter’ which I’m sure will only be translated as ‘gay UFC fighter’. “
“For whoever decided to post that ish(sic) terribly upset, I hope it’s worth it.”
“At the end of the day, I know my character, my morals and who I am as a person,” Molina added. “Even though I’m getting hated/laughed at more and more, I’m getting an equal amount of support which means af*ck tons.”
While multiple female fighters on the roster are openly gay or bisexual, Molina is the first male fighter to affirm his LGBTQ+ status.
Molina last fought in June 2022, when he defeated Zhalgas Zhumagulov in split decision.