Jacksonville, FL — If you hear Jeff Molina tell it, after his UFC 261 victory against Qileng Aori, James Krause deserves all the credit.
Molina also suggested getting hit less would be in his own best interest.
“F*ck dude, I probably shouldn’t get hit that much in the head. No, I’m kidding!” he exclaimed following the fight.
Speaking to media outlets including Cageside Press, Molina, who had just made his octagon debut after winning his way into the promotion on the Contender Series, was more serious on the subject of Krause.
“It was a good fight. I made the proper adjustments between the first and second round, because of my coach James Krause,” Molina (9-2) stated. “My primaries weren’t working, so we had to go to something else. James Krause is going to be the Coach of the Year. He told me what to do, and we made those adjustments, and that’s what won me the fight.”
By the third round, Aori was walking forward like a zombie. Blocking punches with his face. “I was kind of just treating it like a heavy bag,” said Molina. “Don’t put too much into everything, but whenever I heard my corner say ‘smoke it,’ I’d smoke it. Send it. I’m trying to put you on your ass.”
“It was a lot of pitti-pat, just kind of touching his face,” he continued. Molina, who teaches kickboxing, tells his students that “with four ounce gloves on, a seven year old girl can knock you out. If she hits you at the right spot, at the right time, it doesn’t take a lot of power.” It’s that pitti-pat that sets up the big shots, he added.
Molina was supposed to make his debut twice previously, but both he and his opponent eventually contracted COVID-19. “It was back-to-back camps. I was kind of being a bitch about it. I felt like I was riding momentum from Contender Series, and this is a ‘what have you done for me lately?’ sport,” he admitted.
After having a one-on-one with mentor Krause, however, Molina recognized that “I didn’t lose my contract, I’m still in the UFC and one day I’ll be able to have my debut and do the stuff I’m dreamed of since I was a kid.” He did just that Saturday at UFC 261. Now, said Molina, “I want to stay active. I took a little more damage than I wanted to in this fight. I want to be able to read books to kids when I’m older, my future kids. So I need to make some adjustments to not get hit in the head that much. But I want to stay active.”
“I turn 24 in July, maybe get one in around that time,” he added.
Watch the full UFC 261 post-fight press scrum with Jeff Molina above.
