Charles Oliveira: Herb Dean’s mishandling of Ciryl Gane’s illegal strikes should ‘serve as a lesson’

Charles Oliveira has weighed in on the controversial officiating during Alex Pereira's UFC heavyweight title bout against Ciryl Gane, where referee Herb Dean failed to address multiple illegal strikes to the back of Pereira's head. While Pereira has called for Dean to be removed from his future fights, Oliveira sees the incident as a teaching moment rather than grounds for permanent sanction.

Oliveira, the UFC's BMF titleholder, drew parallels to his own 2024 rematch with Michael Chandler, in which referee Keith Peterson similarly missed illegal strikes during a critical moment. Pereira was dropped by a Gane jab and subsequently struck multiple times in areas that should have been off-limits under unified MMA rules. Though Oliveira acknowledged the strikes occurred and should not have, he stopped short of demanding Dean face consequences.

"I think situations like this serve as a lesson for other referees, for the UFC, for the commission, for everyone involved," Oliveira told MMA Fighting. He emphasized the immense pressure on both fighters—Pereira was fighting to become a champion in three weight classes, a historic achievement—and suggested that moment-to-moment angles and the chaos of combat can occasionally obscure an official's view.

Oliveira, who has had Dean referee five of his 37 UFC bouts, stated he holds no grudge and would accept the veteran official in future matchups. His stance reflects a pragmatic view: while the missed calls warrant scrutiny and serve as a reminder for all stakeholders to remain vigilant, they do not warrant blacklisting a respected referee. Whether the illegal strikes materially affected the outcome remains debatable, but Oliveira made clear that preventative officiating is essential moving forward.