When one of MMA’s biggest stars calls a veteran referee a coward to millions of followers online, it shows a serious problem with UFC officiating. Alex Pereira’s frustration started on June 14, when he lost the interim heavyweight title fight to Ciryl Gane at UFC Freedom 250. Alex left the octagon convinced that referee Herb Dean handled the stoppage poorly.
Two weeks later at UFC Baku, he watched Michel Pereira get his hair pulled and poked in the eye without Herb Dean deducting any points from his opponent. For the three-time UFC champion, seeing the same referee miss the same patterns of fouls was the breaking point.
Alex Pereira Blasts Herb Dean After Shara Magomedov Fouls Go Unpunished at UFC Baku
At UFC Baku, referee Dean warned Shara “Bullet” Magomedov twice in the first round for pulling Michel Pereira’s hair during ground grappling. Between rounds, Dean even used a translator in Magomedov’s corner to warn him that another foul would cost him a point. Yet, when Magomedov later poked Pereira in the eye, Dean stopped the action for a recovery break but only issued another warning.
It changed the entire outcome. Michel lost a 29-28 unanimous decision on all three scorecards. If Dean had deducted a single point for the repeated fouls, the adjusted 28-28 scores would have resulted in a draw.
The officiating led to endless chatter online. Alex posted the fight footage to his 8.7 million Instagram followers with the caption, “Herb Dean… coward.” UFC Heavyweight Champion Tom Aspinall also criticized the refereeing online, writing, “MMA doesn’t have ‘rules’ anymore. It’s just ‘suggestions.'”
Alex Pereira just called Herb Dean a coward over his refereeing in the Michel Pereira vs Shara Bullet fight 😬 https://t.co/K0pRghQ0sU
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) June 27, 2026
Michel was also frustrated, and he wrote, “In MMA, there are rules. They must be applied with the same level of rigor to everyone. Respecting the rules means protecting the integrity of the sport and ensuring justice inside the Octagon. My opponent was warned several times and was not punished. When a rule is ignored, the result is compromised. Where’s the criterion, @herbdeanmma?”
The UFC has not yet commented on the situation, but the growing controversy will likely force the promotion to issue an official statement soon
Fighter vs. Referee in Public Is Bad Look
Dean actually posted a video defending his choice in that Gane fight. He argued the punches landed legally near the ears instead of the illegal zone at the spine and base of the skull.
Herb Dean drops an explanation video on strikes to the back of the head rule set https://t.co/CYEz3Mt034 pic.twitter.com/a61gLKdQWe
— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) June 16, 2026
But UFC CEO Dana White publicly sided with Alex, calling the fouls “undeniable.” Alex has since asked the UFC to keep Dean away from his future fights, and his team is pushing athletic commissions to review the tape.
The Baku situation made things worse for Dean because of the timing. Just a week before, at UFC Vegas 119, Andre Fili also complained that Vinicius Oliveira hit him in the back of the head during a stoppage handled by Dean. That meant three different fights ended with the exact same complaints against the same referee in two weeks.
But the core issue is bigger than Herb Dean. The Unified Rules of MMA are too vague about head strikes, and referees rarely deduct points for fouls. Because fighters know they will just get warnings, they keep breaking the rules.
On top of that, as the UFC expands to international locations like Azerbaijan, local commissions often lack the consistent oversight you see in the United States. Alex made the stakes clear after his loss, stating he is now afraid to fight under these conditions.
