How partying and drinking set back Javier Molina’s boxing career

Javier Molina and Jose Pedraza addressed the media ahead of their Sep. 19 super lightweight bout. Molina revealed how the wrong choices impacted him.

In 2008, boxer Javier Molina seemed to have it all. As an amateur, he was a U.S. National champion and Olympian, but his professional career fell short of expectations.

More than 11 years after turning professional, Molina is starting to live up to the hype.

Molina (22-2, 9 KOs), 30, or Norwalk, California, does battle with two-time world champion and fellow former Olympian Jose Pedraza on Saturday, Sept. 19. Even though he has compiled a five-fight winning streak, Molina is still the underdog.

It’s a position that he’s used to after several bumps in the road.

“I’m cool with being the underdog,” Molina told the media during a pre-fight press conference. “There is a reason I’m seen that way, and it’s because I haven’t shown my full potential. Fans haven’t seen all I can do in the ring.”

Molina only has two losses on his record, but every loss makes a boxer’s title aspirations drop to zero. His last defeat came in 2016 against Jamal James, who’s the current  WBA interim welterweight champion.

It would be easy to chock Molina’s losses up to a lack of talent, but that’s not the case, according to Molina. He believes that his lifestyle proved to be his Achilles heel.

“I went through a phase in my life where I kind of checked out,” revealed Molina. “Even though I would be in the gym, like in my head, I wasn’t there. I was just partying the whole time, a lot of drinking. It was just a different lifestyle I was living. That’s why I was fighting at that weight. I even look back at some of my fights, and I’m like man, even the way I was fighting, I felt like every fight I was looking worse. My head just wasn’t in it, and it was showing in my fights.”

Javier Molina takes full responsibility for his shortcomings but is confident he has what it takes to defeat Jose Pedraza.

Molina’s bad choices out of the ring negatively affected his performance and physical conditioning. He regularly fought as a welterweight and even as high as a junior middleweight. His renewed discipline to boxing has slimmed him down to a super lightweight who’s catching fire at the right time.

Molina defeated Amir Imam in his last outing and hopes that a win against Pedraza will vault him into title contention soon. Pedraza is a proven champion, but Molina insists that he hasn’t hit is peak. His self-destructive behavior started before he even turned pro.

“After the Olympic games, I felt like I took the loss pretty hard,” Molina told the media. “My career just kind of went a different route. I had discipline issues. I was partying too much. It showed. I feel like that’s why you see that I’ve never fought for a world title.”

On paper, Pedraza (27-3, 13 KOS), 31, of Puerto Rico, should be one of Molina’s most challenging opponents. He dominated Mikkel LesPierre in his last contest to earn a unanimous decision. Pedraza also dropped LesPierre twice. He respects Molina’s skills but had stern words for his opponent.

“He says he’s ‘El Intocable’ (The Untouchable), but I’m the ‘Sniper,’ and I come with great precision to erase the nickname ‘El Intocable’ that Javier Molina has,” said Pedraza. “This will be another chapter in the historic rivalry between Mexico and Puerto Rico. It will be a great fight.”

Both men have multiple losses on their record. Pedraza has the allure of being a former world champion, but Molina’s successful climb through the rankings over the last few years might cascade into another significant win.

“By beating Pedraza, I put myself in a good position to challenge for a world title,” said Molina. “I know that a victory against a great name like Pedraza will bring me closer to that opportunity to become a champion.”

Jose Pedraza vs. Javier Molina is Top Rank’s main event on Saturday, Sept. 19. Coverage begins on ESPN+ at 7:30 p.m. ET.