UFC fighter Jeff Molina revealed he received ‘at least 100 messages’ from fellow athletes, closeted MMA fighters and members of the public after coming out.
The 25-year-old was forced to come out as bisexual in a statement last week after a video of him performing a sex act on another man was leaked on social media.
He revealed he initially regretted posting his statement, which made him the first male UFC fighter to openly be part of the LGBTQ+ community, out of fear that he brought more attention to the matter.
However, despite some negative reaction after coming out, including a fellow UFC fighter accusing him of leaking the video on purpose, Molina said he received a stream of support from fellow athletes and the public.
‘A couple hours went by and I got an influx of support,’ Molina said in an interview with The MMA Hour.
Jeff Molina revealed he received ‘at least 100 messages’ of support after coming out
The 25-year-old was forced to come out as bisexual after a sex act video was leaked online
‘It was heartwarming to get messages from fellow athletes that are closeted, fellow UFC fighters that are closeted, people with notoriety that were just like, “Hey man, it’s an inspiration, and it sucks on the terms that it happened, but you’re an inspiration. It’s inspiring for you to come out and be the first male UFC fighter to be out.”
‘And that definitely changed the tune of how I was feeling. It almost felt good to turn a s***** situation into a positive by knowing I’m inspiring people around the world. When I say it was more than just a dozen, it was at least 100 messages from fighters, athletes, actors, musicians, just regular Joes. That was pretty cool.’
He also said that multiple people direct-messaged him after the video’s initial posting and removal demanding anywhere from $10,000 to $25,000 or they would re-post it again.
Molina revealed he was initially reluctant to speak publicly on the matter as he struggled to discuss it, having suppressed his sexuality growing up.
‘Growing up, these were feelings I suppressed,’ Molina said. ‘These were things I almost denied. I kept telling myself no. I wrestled in high school, I was a jock in high school, so I was almost mad at myself growing up that these were feelings that I had, and I almost would deny them. I would suppress them.
‘I dated a girl for almost three years in high school. And wanting and thinking, like wanting to be normal, like, ‘normal’ — but I’m not abnormal. This should be something that’s normalized. It’s something that isn’t my personality. It’s something so small and it shouldn’t matter, but it does apparently.
‘It took me a while to come to terms with this, obviously. These last couple of days have been pretty crazy. These last couple days have been pretty wild, and it almost helped me come to terms with, I am normal, you know? This is something that’s a part of me.’
He said that his biggest concern about coming out had been the possibility of a change in attitude towards him in the gym, claiming it would have been ‘heartbreaking’ to have one person look at him or treat him differently.
Molina came out on social media, explaining how he had previously suppressed his desires
But he insisted that it had been alright so far, before conceding that not everyone would have the same experience.
‘I know not everyone’s going to have the same experience if and when they do come out, but it’s something that you shouldn’t be ashamed of who you are,’ Molina added.
‘This should just be something that is normalized, and it sucks that it’s not. And I’m hoping one day we can get to a place where it is.’
Molina is currently suspended from UFC for his alleged role in a betting scheme. He was suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission in December.
The 25-year-old is suspected of having ‘substantial involvement’ with the ‘gaming scheme currently under ongoing investigation related to [MMA coach] James Krause,’ Nevada deputy attorney general Joel Bekker said in January according to ESPN.
Fellow UFC fighter Sean Strickland accused Molina of planning the leak and coming out to distract from his alleged involvement in a betting scheme.
UFC’s Sean Strickland accused Molina as coming out as part of a ‘planned leak’
Zhalgas Zhumagulov of Kazakstan punches Jeff Molina in a flyweight fight
He wrote: ‘Jeff Molina suspended indefinitely for rigging fights, ruining MMA.
‘Everyone “POS” (piece of s***). Jeff Molina “I may of sucked a c**k”. Everyone “you’re so brave”.
‘What the actual CNN is going on here.. Bro we don’t care that you **k dudes its 2023 we care that you’re a pos cheater…’
Then, in reply to someone saying Molina’s sexuality and alleged gambling rule breaches are unrelated by saying: ‘Meh mans (sic) looking at his career fafing away.. was this a planned leak?’
The tweet didn’t go unnoticed by Molina, who replied saying: ‘Temporarily suspended until the investigation is over- I didn’t rig s***. but hope this empowers you to come out too bubba.’
Molina, a five-foot-six, 125-pound fighter, has an 11-2-0 record in UFC.
His last fight was against Zhalgas Zhumagulov on June 4 of last year.
He won that bout by split decision.
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