Dana White appeared during a press conference after the Zuffa Boxing card this weekend, but when the conversation turned to veteran referee Herb Dean, the UFC president made one thing unmistakably clear: this is not his concern.
The controversy stems from Dean’s handling of the Michel Pereira vs. Shara Magomedov bout on Saturday night, a performance that drew sharp criticism after Dean repeatedly warned Magomedov for illegal moves, including hair pulling and eye pokes, without ever deducting a point.
UFC star Alex Pereira did not keep his frustration private. He shared a petition calling for Dean’s removal and went further, publicly calling the longtime referee a coward for his failure to follow through on repeated warnings that never led to consequences.
Pereira’s older brother Michel was on the receiving end of those fouls, which made the outrage personal. When Magomedov grabbed Michel’s head a second time without penalty, observers took note that Dean’s pattern of warning without punishing had once again let a rule-breaker off the hook.
Tom Aspinall, the UFC interim heavyweight champion, weighed in as well, suggesting the problem extends beyond one referee and one night. “MMA doesn’t have ‘rules’ anymore. It’s just ‘suggestions,'” Aspinall wrote.
Despite two prominent champions publicly lobbying for action, White declined to add his voice. When asked whether Dean may have lost a step, he was straightforward. “I don’t know. I don’t know the answer to that question,” White said. “But that’s not up to me. That’s up to the commission.”
On the petition Pereira shared, White was equally brief. “No, but I heard about it,” he said, and left it there.
Dana White is someone not typically known for holding back. However, his restraint reflects the UFC’s long-standing position that referee oversight belongs to the athletic commissions, not the promotion itself.
