Herb Dean says he is certain he made the right call in stopping the Adriano Moraes vs. Phumi Nkuta bout at MVP MMA 1, despite the controversy surrounding the finish.
Moraes sank in a rear-naked choke in the final seconds of Round 3, with Nkuta going unconscious just before the bell rang. Moraes was awarded the win at 4:59 of the third round, but the timing of the stoppage immediately drew debate. Dean addressed the decision on The Ariel Helwani Show.
“I’m certain that the right decision was made. Definitely sure that he went unconscious before the bell â like, a fraction of a second before the bell â and then I went and stopped the fight. He held on for a fraction of a second past the bell. I don’t think it was egregious enough for me to disqualify him.”
Dean also addressed why Moraes may have continued holding the choke past the bell.
“Each fight is the most important fight of your career, and you have seconds to lock something in. Who knows where his mind was at? He’s fighting for everything, for his whole career, and giving it everything he’s got. Sometimes it takes a second for someone to realize it’s over.”
Nkuta’s manager has filed a formal appeal of the result with the California State Athletic Commission. The outcome of that appeal remains uncertain.
âŒïžBREAKING: Previously unseen angle of Adriano Moraes vs. Phumi Nkuta finish sheds whole new light on the controversial endingpic.twitter.com/Dlw5oqt76e
Herb Dean has irked ire from many MMA fans for decisions and stoppages over the last several years, and another such controversy — a late stoppage — occurred during King Green’s victory over Daniel Zellhuber at UFC Mexico.
Green showed slick movement for a fighter of his age, 39, as he slipped away from Zellhuber’s striking, pelting him with jabs and counterpunches. Zellhuber looked to steal momentum back with a tight buggy choke attempt in the second round, but Green survived and worked his way out of it.
Late in round two, Green clocked Zellhuber with a combination, continuing to throw a barrage of shots as Zellhuber collapsed to the mat, seemingly unconscious.
Referee Herb Dean, however, gave what has universally been considered excessive attempts, making Zellhuber take unnecessary damage before the stoppage.
Herb Dean Takes Heat For Late Stoppage As King Green Defeats Daniel Zellhuber At UFC Mexico City
King Green knocks Daniel Zellhuber out in the second round. He rocked Zellhuber and then a left hand looked to put Zellhuber out on his feet, and Zellhuber felldown and lots of punches by Green saw Herb Dean step in too late as Zellhuber was done. #UFCMexico
Herb Dean just letting guys get brain damage. How the hell do you suck so bad at your job and just never have to worry about, this is sports not politics. Fire that man. #UFCMexico
— A Tree grows in Cleveland (@ThePhantomPoopR) March 1, 2026
Someone should let Herb Dean know itâs ok to retire. Dude is a liability as a UFC ref
The 39-year-old Green has now won three of his last five. He entered tonight off a split decision win over Lance Gibson Jr. Green’s losses in this span came against notable names Paddy Pimblett and Mauricio Ruffy.
Zellhuber has now lost three straight, coming in off losses to Michael Johnson and Esteban Ribovics.
In what unfortunately seems to become an often occurance during UFC events, referee Herb Dean has come under fire from the MMA community once again following Axel Sola’s third-round finish of Rhys McKee during UFC Paris.
McKee had moments of success with heavy punches and pressure, but Sola found success throughout the fight thanks to clean left hands and body shots. The finish, however, came in the third round, with Sola seemingly dropping McKee with a body shot. McKee appeared to look for a takedown before Sola’s ground-and-pound. Dean, however, seemed to only give a second or two for McKee to respond before stepping in, giving Sola the win and prompting protests from McKee.
Dean already faced from scrutiny earlier in the card, accused of not taking better, sooner action when Harry Hardwick was left unable to stand following leg kicks from Kaue Fernandes.
Herb Dean Under Fire For Axel Sola Third-Round TKO Win Over Rhys McKee At UFC Paris
Marc Goddard finds support from a fellow community member in the wake of the recent fight dispute.
Last week, in the UFC 319 main event, Khamzat Chimaev overpowered Dricus Du Plessis to claim the middleweight title with a one-sided unanimous decision.
âBorzâ overwhelmed Du Plessis throughout the fight, dictating the action with constant chain wrestling and suffocating top control. He landed 12 takedowns, repeatedly trapping the defending champion in crucifix positions and keeping him on the defensive for most of the bout.
Image: @ufc/X
Late in the fourth round, referee Goddard stepped in to separate Chimaev from âStillknocks,â seemingly due to a stalemate. The 51-year-old official made a second stand-up late in the final frame, a decision that has ignited widespread debate within the MMA community, drawing criticism from former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker and other pundits.
Herb Dean Defends Marc Goddard Amid Debate Over UFC 319 Headliner Intervention
During a recent interview with MMA journalist Helen Yee, veteran referee Herb Dean weighed in on Marc Goddardâs decision to separate Khamzat Chimaev from Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 319. While Dean acknowledged that âBorzâ was clearly dominating, he defended his fellow official, noting that MMA should not reward fighters who simply hold dominant positions without actively pursuing a finish.
According to Dean, stand-ups in such scenarios are appropriate to keep the action flowing and preserve the excitement of the sport.
“I donât think anything was wrong with his [Marc Goddard] standups, Dean said. “Khamzat dominated the fight round. This is an ongoing conversation that stakeholders and everyone in the sport has, but what do we want this sport to look like? Do we want people to achieve a dominant position, which, if you’re not using it to beat your opponent, could almost be looked at as a hiding place, as a place to burn time? And I’m never gonna accuse Khamzat of hiding because, I mean, the man’s a savage.
“But if you get a position, we can break that one down, the crucifix chest-to-chest position, not a lot of height, very difficult to get to a place where you can punch your opponent. Sometimes he’s able to get elbows, and you want to reward people. But we can talk about 10-8 [round], and at the same time you want to reward someone with a 10-8 for trying to finish their opponent, for taking a risk⊠I’m okay with those standups that Marc Goddard did.”
Goddard, with over two decades of officiating experience, has established himself as one of MMAâs most respected referees, having overseen hundreds of high-profile bouts in the UFC and other major promotions.
The fight between Sean O’Malley and Merab Dvalishvili for the bantamweight title wasn’t exactly a fight of the year contender, but it wasn’t dull either.
Despite the stakes that were involved in this fight, Dean repeatedly told Dvalishvili to work when he was wrestling O’Malley, specifically towards the end of the fight.
He later explained that this was not a call that he made because the challenger wasn’t doing anything – rather, it was because Dvalishvili wasn’t attempting to cause damage or finish the fight in these exchanges.
Herb Dean Says That The Contender Series Is Proof Of What The UFC Wants MMA To Look Like
In a recent interview with Helen Yee Sports, Dean spoke more about why he is asking fighters to work more in these positions.
He believes that though a fighter using his grappling to negate his opponent’s offence is an effective technique, it isn’t what the UFC want the sport to look like.
To prove his point, Dean made reference to Dana White’s Contender Series and how those fights prioritize action and aggression.
We have seen several occasions throughout the eight seasons of the show, where fighters win in convincing fashion but don’t earn contracts because their performances didn’t show that hunger and killer instinct that the UFC is after.
Dean believes that the reason for that is to fill the roster with fighters who are always looking for the finish, rather than stalling the action to secure a victory by any means necessary.
“I’m always gonna be learning something new from some of these athletes if they take some time to share with me. But, it’s what we want our sport to look like and I think we want our, I’m going to do the Contender Series tonight, I think we want the fights to look like the guys that get signed on the Contender Series.
“That’s what I think that, that’s why they sign those guys because I think that’s what they want our sport to look like and so guys who maybe get ahead and are going to manage position… if that’s what we want our sport to look like, somebody in charge let me know. But, I think we want it to look like the fights on the Contender Series so that’s why we tell guys to work.”
According to former referee John McCarthy, Herb Dean would have been well within his rights to penalize UFC Bantamweight Champion Merab Dvalishvili for his actions against Sean O’Malley.
Dvalishvili secured his long-awaited crowning moment on mixed martial arts’ biggest stage at this month’s UFC 306 (Noche UFC) pay-per-view. The Georgian topped the lineup, staged inside the unique surroundings of the Sphere, in competition for O’Malley’s title.
While “Suga” was able to find the fight-ending blow against Dvalishvili’s friend and teammate Aljamain Sterling last year to capture the gold, that wasn’t the case on September 14.
The moment almost ended in disaster for Dvalishvili, who took the referee’s calls to stop as the end of the round and turned his back on O’Malley with seconds remaining, leading to him eating a strike.
But according to McCarthy, Dvalishvili would have faced further consequences had he been officiating the UFC 306 main event…
McCarthy Recalls Docking Fighter 2 Points For Kissing Opponent In Light Of UFC 306 Moment
During a recent episode of his Weighing In podcast alongside former Strikeforce and UFC fighter Josh Thomson, McCarthy looked back on how Dean officiated the September 14 main event in Las Vegas.
On the topic of Dvalishvili’s back kisses toward the end of round two, McCarthy recalled how he dealt with a similar situation during his days as an active referee.
“I’ve been in this position where I had a fighter kiss another fighter. You look and you go…’What the f*ck did you just do?’ It takes you a second to realize, ‘You just f*cking kissed him!’ Then it’s a matter of how you are going to deal with it,” McCarthy said. “I took two points from him. You want to do something that is absolutely not part of our sport, nobody asked you to do it, nobody wants you to do it, and you want to be cute? Congratulations, you better go finish the fight now. I can disqualify you if I want.
“When that happened, Herb was caught off guard, let’s just be honest,” McCarthy continued. “He should have either made a decisive, ‘Stop! Time, you get over there, you get over there,’ and do something about what just occurred. If he wants to give him a hard warning over it, that’s fine. If he wants to take points, take points for unsportsmanlike conduct, that’s fine. But he got caught in the middle of it.”
O’Malley and his coach, Tim Welch, have since given their own verdict on the moment, suggesting that had the referee kept completely out of the way, “Suga” could have launched a potentially fight-ending head kick from behind.
Alas, that wasn’t to be, and Dvalishvili instead ground out a convincing victory on the scorecards. But with some referees evidently favoring stern punishment for his actions inside the Sphere, perhaps he’ll be a little less keen to place his lips on his next opponent.
Count former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw among those confused by Herb Dean’s actions in this past weekend’s main event.
The veteran official was tasked with being the third man inside the Octagon for the Noche UFC (UFC 306) headliner inside the Sphere, where Sean O’Malley put his 135-pound gold on the line against Merab Dvalishvili.
Later in the fight, the referee featured in a different way as he frequently called for more action while Dvalishvili held a dominant grappling position.
While that was enough to cause debate, Dean’s decision to do the same while the pair were on the feet in the main event’s dying seconds saw him become the subject of heavy criticism from the commentary team and fans online.
Dillashaw Slams Dean For UFC 306 Main Event Refereeing: ‘Shouldn’t Be Involved Like That’
During a recent episode of the JAXXON PODCAST, Dillashaw looked back on the events that unfolded inside the Sphere alongside Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Luke Rockhold, and Jason Parillo.
The former UFC bantamweight champion was firm with his criticism of the third man inside the cage for Saturday’s headliner, suggesting Dean refereed favorably toward the defending champion.
“Itâs complete bullsh*t,” Dillashaw said. “You canât tell two fighters to work when theyâre on their feet. I could run circles if I wanted to. You canât tell me to go and work. … Itâs not like Iâm stalling against the cage. Weâre striking, and youâre telling me to work. Like, I might run into something now ’cause youâre coaching me on how I am supposed to fight. The ref shouldnât be involved like that.
“I thought it was very weird. It was almost like he had money on OâMalley,” Dillashaw continued. “(It was) like he wanted Merab to keep going so OâMalley could catch him with something. It was weird.”
Dean’s performance in the main event has remained a prominent talking point days on from the show, as has factors away from the fighting action itself such as Welch’s controversial corner tactics.
While many have lauded the UFC for the spectacle it put on inside the Sphere, those likely weren’t the topics that the promotion hoped would come out of the pay-per-view main event.
“Trailblazer” quickly returned to the win column, landing a submission victory over Oleksiejczuk that will no doubt go down as one of the most gruesome in recent memory.
Holland On UFC 302 Armbar: ‘I’m Going To Have To Do A Full-Blown Break…’
During his post-fight press conference, Holland looked back on the finishing sequence of his clash with Oleksiejczuk, which came just over 90 seconds into the bout.
“Big Mouth” recalled hearing a quick pop of the arm, which wasn’t enough to draw a tap out of “Hussar.” Holland joked that responsibility for the injury lies with referee Herb Dean, who dismissed his initial calls to halt the fight before applying further pressure on Oleksiejczuk’s arm.
“Herb Deanâs fault. I asked him to stop it a little earlier, but Herb Dean was like, ‘Youâve got to go a little bit longer.’ Alright, cool, cool,” Holland said jokingly. “When I first put him in the armbar, I heard the pop. After that, it wasnât popping again and I was like, Iâm going to have to do a full-blown break. So I kept trying to do a little chihuahua scoot, get myself underneath there and then hit a good pull after that. But the guy is tough as nails.
“He hit me with a good shot. Tough guy… I fought John Phillips for my first UFC win, and I had a feeling he would be like John Phillips but better,” Holland continued. “I definitely want to win the fight because I like both of my checks, but (I wish) no harm to him. I hope heâs okay and I hope itâs truly not broken because he seemed to be a cool guy.”
The result marked Holland’s first victory since a first-round D’arce choke against Michael Chiesa at UFC 291 last July. Defeats to Jack Della Maddalena and Page subsequently halted his charge up the welterweight ladder.
Having rebounded up at 185 pounds, it remains to be seen which division will stage the 31-year-old’s Texan’s next outing. But given his penchant for high activity, it likely won’t be long until we find out.
Jorge Masvidal is not happy with the official of his UFC 272 main event, Herb Dean.
At UFC 272, Jorge Masvidal took on Colby Covington in a heavily anticipated grudge match. Early in the fight, Covington poked Masvidal in the eye, to which “Gamebred” immediately protested to referee Herb Dean. However, Dean allowed the fight to continue, with Covington able to close the distance while Masvidal complained to the referee and then eventually took Masvidal down and controlled the round.
Masvidal believes that even though this sequence took place very early in the fight, it still had an impact on the outcome because it led to Covington taking him down and draining some of his gas tank. He also said the foul had a lasting impact on his eye, with a pain that lingered even after the bout concluded.
âThe eye poke was pretty bad, man. The only thing thatâs hurting on me right now is the fuckinâ eye poke,” Masvidal said. “My eyeâs still throbbing right now. Iâve had a couple mishaps with Herb Dean. I just donât get it why he didnât fix the action. [Covington] threw a punch, missed, and then he immediately just jabbed me in the fuckinâ eyeball. Iâm not gonna take nothinâ away (from) him winning the fight because that was just one sequence; it wouldâve been cool if he wouldâve stopped it there and I wouldâve got my fuckinâ breather and then we restart because he poked the shit out of my eye, and itâs still throbbinâ right now. Thatâs the only thing thatâs hurting on me.
âMe and Herb Dean donât have a clean record as it is. Weâve had a couple mishaps in the past, and shit, man, heâs not my cup of tea when it comes to referring.â
Herb Dean is one of the most experienced referees in the sport of MMA, but he has not been without controversy.
Perhaps the most memorable criticism he’s received came from ex-UFC fighter Dan Hardy, who compiled an entire presentation of Herb Dean’s history of “late stoppages” in his argument explaining why he confronted Dean while serving as a commentator during a UFC broadcast after such a stoppage. And as recently as last November, Hardy made it clear that his view of Dean has not changed.
Dan Hardy & Herb Dean (Photo: Jeff Bottari/Zuffa)
Masvidal is on the same page as Hardy when it comes to Herb Dean. In fact, he believes that anyone who is a fan of the sport can testify that Dean is mistake-prone.
When asked if he was surprised that Dean didn’t deduct a point from Covington when he fouled Masvidal with a groin strike that came after the eye poke, Masvidal doubled down on his low opinion of Dean far beyond this one officiating performance.
âNo, I wasnât surprised at all,” Masvidal responded. “I was just surprised that after the eye poke in the first round that he didnât just break it up and address it. Like, that position wouldnât have happened had he not poked me in the eye. So itâs whatever. Itâs Herb Dean stuff. Everybody here couldâif youâve seen fighting, youâve seen Herb Dean have numerous hiccups. Iâm not gonna blame the fight on him, but heâs not my cup of tea when it comes to referring.â
Do you agree with Jorge Masvidal’s harsh assessment of Herb Dean as a referee?
