Overview
- On Wednesday, July 22, California State Athletic Commission executive director Andy Foster publicly said he has full confidence in veteran referee Herb Dean and defended Dean’s handling of the Ciryl Gane–Alex Pereira TKO.
- Foster said he watched the sequence live and argued the knockdown began Gane’s finishing burst, noting some punches landed to the back of Pereira’s head but warning or stopping the action could have altered the result.
- Foster confirmed Dean will referee the main event at UFC 331 in California and said commissions have favored reassigning duties rather than issuing public suspensions for referees facing criticism.
- Alex Pereira has launched a public campaign and petition calling for Dean to be barred from his fights, while peers and officials have defended Dean and Nevada reportedly shifted another referee, Mike Beltran, into a top spot at UFC 329.
- Foster said he will propose replacing the intentional versus unintentional foul framework with categories such as incidental, reckless and malicious to clarify enforcement, a change that could affect point deductions, fight outcomes and fighter pay.