Herb Dean has publicly defended his officiating in Alex Pereira vs. Ciryl Gane at UFC White House after controversy erupted over alleged illegal strikes to the back of the head.
Gane stopped Pereira with strikes 1:27 into the second round, but slow-motion footage of the finish prompted debate, with claims that multiple blows landed illegally. A slow-motion video of the sequence shows most of Gane’s punches and elbows landing in the area Dean described as legal, with two definite illegal strikes.
Pereira later released a video complaining about illegal strikes to the back of his head and criticizing Dean’s refereeing. In response, Dean released his own video, saying, "I could tell by some of the comments online that I owe you guys an explanation about the rules and how I refereed the fight," and adding, "First of all, all respect to both fighters. I’m talking about Gane and Pereira. Amazing fight. Okay, so let’s get into it with this rule."
Dean detailed how the back-of-the-head rule is defined and enforced in MMA. "The rule we’re we’re talking about is the back of the head, and that’s confusing because it’s different than boxing," he said, explaining that officials "focus on the nape of the neck" and "a [mohawk] line right here with one inch variance to either side" as the foul area, while the sides of the back of the head are considered legal.
Dean stated he does not believe he has anything to apologize for regarding his refereeing of the fight.
