Lately, every UFC event seems to bring fresh criticism for a referee. At UFC Houston, for instance, Jacob Montalvo faced backlash for his officiating. And soon after, at UFC Mexico, fans questioned Herb Dean’s decision to stop the fight between Douglas Silva de Andrade and Javier Reyes one second before the final bell. With UFC 326, the trend appears to continue, as the veteran referee has once again come under fire.
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“Dude, we’ve gotta fire Herb Dean,” wrote Jed Meshew, a combat journalist for MMA Fighting, on X. “He let Tobias eat like 6 shots because he wasn’t intervening after the low blow with any level of commitment. Inexcusably bad refereeing.”
He was soon joined by veteran combat journalist at MMA Fighting, Damon Martin, who dragged controversial referee Dan Miragliotta into the conversation as well.
“Dan Miragliotta still has a job,” he responded. “That’s all you need to know about referee standards in combat sports.”
Diyar Nurgozhay and Rafael Tobias squared off in a light heavyweight bout at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on the UFC 326 prelims. In the first round of the fight, Nurgozhay threw a combination while closing the distance. One of his punches accidentally landed low on Tobias. This was deemed unintentional by referee Herb Dean.
Dude, we’ve gotta fire Herb Dean. He let Tobias eat like 6 shots because he wasn’t intervening after the low blow with any level of committment. Inexcusably bad refereeing. #UFC326
— Jed Meshew II (@JedKMeshew) March 7, 2026
However, before Dean could stop it, Nurgozhay had landed several more shots on Tobias, which was the root of the criticism against the referee. In the end, Nurgozhay won the fight via unanimous decision, with judges scoring the bout 30-27, 29-28, 29-28. With the win, Nurgozhay has successfully bounced back from two consecutive losses in 2025.
Meanwhile, Rafael Tobias, with the loss, has dropped his debut fight in the UFC after entering the promotion through Dana White’s Contender Series in September last year. Anyway, when fans discovered Meshew and Martin’s posts on X, they quickly joined them to criticize Herb Dean.
Fans refuse to take it easy on Herb Dean after UFC 326 blunder
Fans didn’t hesitate to express their frustration. “And he’s still somehow the only referee that gets cheered before each fight,” one user wrote about Dean. The veteran referee has been working for the promotion since 2004, so he has become somewhat of a celebrity in his own regard.
Someone else criticized Dean for making further mistakes during the fight. The user posted: “And didn’t even put them back in position.” However, the referee doesn’t have to put them back in position after an accidental low blow. Still, people weren’t convinced, and some turned their attention to Dan Miragliotta.
“He needs to go too,” another user chimed in about Dan Miragliotta. Miragliotta had faced heavy backlash because of his role in UFC Vancouver in October 2025. He cost Kyle Nelson a TKO finish against Matt Frevola in the first round, stepping in three seconds before the round was closed because he thought he heard the horn blow. Everyone from Nelson to Hunter Campbell and Daniel Cormier (who came in for the Octagon interview) was visibly confused.
Even the next user wasn’t happy about Dan Miragliotta. The user posted: “Dan is too fat and old to be in there.” Miragliotta faced backlash again for his work at UFC Vegas 113 in February this year. His stoppage of the Dustin Jacoby vs Julius Walker fight also raised many questions.
Meanwhile, this user felt Herb Dean would face zero consequences. “‘He’s the best in the biz’ – Joe Rogan immediately after,” the user mocked. UFC color commentator Joe Rogan has not only praised Dean, but he has also featured him on his podcast.
Dean redeemed himself later the same night. During the Cody Garbrandt vs Long Xiao bout, he penalized Xiao twice for low blows, taking points away each time, and offering a strict warning about disqualifying him.
That being said, horrible officiating in UFC fights continues, at least according to fans and experts. But what did you think of Dean’s stoppage? Does he deserve the criticism?
