‘He’s Got to Stop Touching People’- Dana White Criticizes Veteran Referee Herb Dean for a Controversial Stoppage at UFC Fight Night

Herb Dean is one of the most notable people in the UFC. However, the UFC supremo Dana White recently criticized him for an incident at UFC Vegas 42.

In the co-main event of UFC Fight Night: Holloway vs Rodriguez, Ben Rothwell and Marcos Rogerio de Lima clashed against each other inside the cage. Herb Dean refereed this bout that had a controversial stoppage which also put him in a bad light.

During the post-fight conference of the event, while sharing his opinion on the incident, White expressed his disgust over Dean’s performance. He said, “Herb needs to stop touching guys unless the fight’s over, you know what I mean.”

“He goes in and grabs (Ben Rothwell) by the waist, and then decides, ‘Oops.’ The good thing about this one was that fight should’ve been stopped when he stopped it. And you didn’t see Ben jumping up and arguing about it. That fight should’ve been stopped.”

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“But he’s gotta pull the trigger and stop touching guys. Don’t touch them unless you’re gonna stop the fight. And when they played it back in slow motion. He’s kinda like dancing like he doesn’t know what to do, whether he’s gonna jump in or not jump in. Yeah, I like him personally. He’s a nice guy, but he’s got to stop touching people until he’s ready to stop the fight, you know.”

What went down with Herb Dean at UFC Vegas 42?

Veteran referee Herb Dean is one of the most experienced referees in the MMA universe. However, he has been in the headlines for a few of his controversial decisions in the promotion.

During the heavyweight bout last weekend, the Brazilian fighter Lima opened up by chopping Rothwell’s legs right after the first bell. The former continued the striking affair.

After another strong right from Lima, ‘Big Ben’ wobbled and had his back against the cage. Lima continued the barrage of punches and the 40-year-old looked unsteady. Meanwhile, Dean was taking a moment to understand the situation.

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Later, Dean jumped in and caught Lima by the waist to stop the fight, only to change his mind. Unfortunately, Lima had already stopped after getting Dean’s signal while ‘Big Ben’ was still in the position for a takedown. Hence, it may have been a fight interference in the minds of some,

What are your thoughts on the unfortunate ending of the bout? What do you make of White’s words? Let us know in the comments below.