The two UFC fighters implicated in the betting scandal have now received their respective suspensions.
On Tuesday, the Nevada Athletic Commission issued a 29-month suspension to former UFC featherweight fighter Darrick Minner due to his involvement in a betting scandal connected to his coach, James Krause.
The probe into suspicious betting activity was triggered after Minner’s first-round TKO loss to Shayilan Nuerdanbieke at a Fight Night event in November 2022. It was later revealed that Minner had intentionally failed to disclose a pre-existing injury before the fight.
Suspicion intensified when betting lines swung drastically in the lead-up to the event, with the 34-year-old Nebraska native becoming a massive underdog just before the fight commenced — only to be finished in just over a minute.
Minner was originally suspended alongside Krause when the investigation first launched, a controversy that even led several major sportsbooks to stop accepting UFC wagers.
However, he later reached an adjudication agreement with the Nevada State Attorney General and was ordered to pay $235.56 in prosecution fees. His suspension is retroactive, making him eligible to return to competition on Wednesday, March 26.
Additionally, UFC flyweight Jeff Molina, who had been sidelined since January 2023 due to his alleged involvement in the betting scheme linked to Krause, has now been handed a three-year suspension.
Molina was also fined $235.56 in prosecution fees for withholding information about his teammate Minner’s injury and deliberately placing a hefty bet on the fight.
“El Jefe,” whose ban is set to expire on Nov. 5, was last seen in action in June 2022, where he secured a hard-fought split decision victory over Zhalgas Zhumagulov, extending his winning streak to three inside the Octagon.
In the wake of the 2022 controversy, U.S. Integrity launched a formal investigation, leading several gaming commissions to prohibit betting on UFC fights. In response, the MMA promotion took decisive action, banning its fighters from training with Krause or at his Missouri-based gym, Glory MMA & Fitness.
