Charles Oliveira is the latest UFC fighter to question Herb Dean’s officiating: “He should have stepped in”

Charles Oliveira has joined a growing list of fighters who have criticism for longtime referee Herb Dean.

Dean has come under fire as of late following UFC Freedom 250 and UFC Baku. He officiated the interim heavyweight title fight between Ciryl Gane and Alex Pereira. Gane won the fight via second-round TKO, but Pereira ripped Dean for not intervening when he took illegal shots to the back of the head.

At UFC Baku, Dean was the referee for the co-headliner between Sharabutdin Magomedov and Michel Pereira. Dean didn’t take a point from Shara “Bullet” despite the fact that he blatantly pulled Pereira’s hair and then delivered an eye poke.

Many have been critiquing Dean’s work as of late, and Oliveira is the latest name to chime in. The BMF titleholder told MMAFighting that Dean wasn’t proactive enough during the Gane vs. Pereira fight.

“Now imagine Poatan’s opponent, knowing all the pressure surrounding that fight. If Poatan had won, he would have become the guy with titles in three different weight classes. Poatan’s name is huge. So imagine being his opponent, landing a big shot and thinking, ‘Man, I’m going to beat this guy, I’m going to stop all this hype, and my name is going to skyrocket.’ He’s under pressure, in a moment where he wants to throw everything he has. That’s why I think there’s a referee there to understand what’s right and what’s wrong, whether it’s time to stop the action or not. I put all the responsibility on the referee, just like I did with the referee in my fight. I think he should have stopped the fight and said, ‘Man, you’re doing something wrong.’”

While “do Bronxs” doesn’t know if the illegal strikes directly led to the result, he still believes Dean should’ve done something.

“In Herb Dean’s case, I think he should have stepped in. As Poatan said, he took the jab, he took other shots, and there were punches to the back of the head. People asked me, ‘Do you think a punch to the back of the head made a difference?’ I don’t know. I wasn’t in there. What I do know is that several shots landed in a place where they shouldn’t have. Whether that affected the outcome or not, I can’t tell you. But there were definitely illegal strikes.”

Time will tell if athletic commissions will begin to monitor Dean’s performances more closely. Dean has defended himself numerous times from past criticism. He’s also had the likes of “Big” John McCarthy vouch for him.

Are you expecting Herb Dean to face scrutiny from the athletic commissions, or will it be business as usual? Chime in below.