Jeff Molina, a former UFC flyweight contender, plans to join BKFC for bare-knuckle fighting after his suspension ends in November, following his involvement in a betting scandal, but BKFC clarified that no official contract exists yet due to his current suspension.
Jeff Molina’s gearing up for a comeback, but this time, he’s ditching the gloves. The former UFC flyweight contender is stepping into the bare-knuckle ring with BKFC. He signed on after parting ways with the UFC, all thanks to a betting scandal tied to his coach, James Krause.
BKFC confirmed the news to MMA Fighting, following Molina’s announcement on The Ariel Helwani Show. However, there’s a catch—Molina can’t compete until after Nov. 5. He’s currently serving a three-year suspension from the Nevada Athletic Commission.
The suspension drama kicked off with Molina’s teammate, Darrick Minner. Minner lost to Shayilan Nuerdanbieke by first-round TKO at UFC Vegas 64 in November 2022. Oddly, betting lines shifted dramatically before the fight, with Minner becoming a massive underdog.
Krause and Minner were suspended for not reporting an injury. But the real scandal was the potential betting fraud, which led to sportsbooks refusing UFC bets. Molina got caught up in it due to his involvement in wagering on Minner’s fight.
Matthew Feeley, Nevada’s deputy attorney general, stated Molina knew about Minner’s injury but didn’t inform the commission. Instead, he placed significant bets on Minner’s fight outcome. Consequently, Molina faced a three-year suspension and a fine.
Before the suspension, Molina had a 3-0 record in the UFC flyweight division. Now, he’s joining BKFC’s expanding roster, as the promotion recently held its first event in Italy and plans to debut in Texas this June.
But wait—there’s a twist! BKFC later revealed Molina isn’t officially signed yet due to his suspension. They tweeted, “Yesterday’s announcement regarding Jeff Molina’s signing was premature. We respect the ABC’s current suspension and will honor their rules and suspensions.”