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UFC fighters Jeff Molina and Darrick Minner were suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) this week for their roles in a wide-ranging fight-rigging scandal. The investigation into the two fighters and a MMA trainer began in 2022 and is still not fully complete.
In November of 2022, there was an odd betting line movement right before Darrick Minner fought Shayilan Nuerdanbieke. The following month, Minner was cut from the UFC roster and trainer James Krause was banned. UFC president Dana White also temporarily banned all fighters who trained with James Krause.
When asked about the betting investigation in December of 2022, Dana White boldly proclaimed, “They’re going to f—— federal prison. Federal f—— prison. If you’re that f—— stupid, and somebody else wants to do it, knock yourself out. There’s not enough money in it to ruin your life, and not go to jail, go to federal prison.”
By January of 2023, UFC fighter Jeff Molina had also been suspended by the NSAC for “substantial” involvement in the “gaming scheme” related to the James Krause Investigation.
Fast forward to this week, and Nevada deputy attorney general Matthew Feeley has now officially confirmed that Jeff Molina used inside information, a serious knee injury that was undisclosed by Darrick Minner, and placed “significant bets” on Minner’s UFC fight. Minner ended up losing the fight in just over a minute.
“This is one case of betting with inside information on the injury,” NSAC commissioner Jeff Mullen said during a hearing in Las Vegas on Tuesday.
Minner and Molina have yet to been charged with any crimes, but Minner has been suspended for 29 months, while Molina was suspended for 36 months. The suspensions, however, are retroactive to 2022, which means Minner will be eligible to fight again on Wednesday and Molina will again be allowed to fight in November, Front Office Sports reports.
On Tuesday, Jeff Molina claimed he bet less than $500, writing on X (Twitter), “My words were twisted here. I wagered on the entire card. It’s how I made extra money on the side when I wasn’t fighting and all I do is watch fights. I had wagers on both sides of the fight and my ‘significant’ bet was less than $500. The only thing I’m guilty of was continuing to wager on fights after the UFC emailed us telling us to stop. Getting a 3 year suspension for continuing to bet two weeks after getting an email that said to stop is insane. [Conor] McGregor can post his million dollar bet slip every month on a main event as a fighter on the roster and no one blinks an eye. Def a double standard there.”
MMA Journalist Jason Hagholm responded to Molina’s post, writing, “Wagering on both sides of the fight doesn’t make it look that much better Jeff. McGregor’s posts were most likely sponsored posts.”
Molina would later write in response to the comment, “It’s not about making it look better Jason. I’m saying what I did. What I completely disagree with is saying I deserve a “lifetime ban” for my $350 wagers I had on the entire card. I made a mistake by continuing to wager no doubt and a 3 yr suspension is beyond suffice but acting like 23 year old me was this fight fixing mastermind making millions of dollars is comical. The fact is a fighter fought injured which happens literally all the time and obviously word got out.”
James Krause’s suspension has yet to be adjudicated. ESPN reported in 2023 that the MMA trainer acted as an agent for an offshore bookmaking operation for years.
State authorities have also claimed there was a “substantial” connection between Molina and Krause’s gambling operation. At one point, Molina wrote for Krause’s subscription service called the 1% Club, which featured his betting tips, “In stocks this is called insider trading in MMA betting it’s called James Krause. For the last 6 months all my bills including mortgage and car note have been paid via Krause’s picks. Do yourself a favor and join the VIP.”