UFC flyweight prospect Jeff Molina has experienced newfound fame that he doesn’t completely comprehend.
“I feel weird being appreciated for something that should just be f*cking common decency,” Molina said Monday on “The MMA Hour.”
After his split decision win over Zhalgas Zhumagulov on Saturday at UFC Fight Night 207, Molina (11-2 MMA, 3-0 UFC) went off on the backlash he received since announcing mid-fight week that he was excited to wear the promotion’s designated Pride Month shorts in support of the LGBTQ community.
A video shared by MMA Junkie of Molina’s remarks went viral and has been viewed 1.1 million times on Twitter as of this writing, making it a whirlwind almost 48 hours for the 24-year-old.
Jeff Molina goes *off* about the negative comments he received for wearing UFC’s pride month shorts.
“I just thought in 2022 people would be a little more open-minded and not pieces of sh*t. But I guess I was wrong.”#UFCVegas56 | Full video: https://t.co/mOxnqIFGCb pic.twitter.com/aKeVUUeXyg
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) June 5, 2022
Molina indicated that most of what he’s received has been positive and come from folks who don’t normally follow MMA, but there’s a side that continues to rear its ugly head.
“I’ve been getting both sides of it,” Molina said. “And that’s fine, man. The hate doesn’t bother me. It’s more shocking than anything.”
He continued, “I feel like I’m being appreciated for something I shouldn’t be appreciated for if that makes sense. … It’s like being applauded for saying murder is wrong. It should just be common (sense) – rape is wrong, racism is wrong, being hateful toward someone for who they love is wrong. Who the f*ck cares, man, at the end of the day? That’s the only thing that makes me feel weird about the situation.”
A defense of UFC Pride Month shorts made Jeff Molina go viral – but he wishes it wasn’t like this