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Alex Pereira continues to share his frustrations regarding the officiating in mixed martial arts.
‘Poatan’ has been vocally critical of veteran referee Herb Dean ever since he failed to become the first UFC triple champion at the White House this past June.
In the UFC Freedom 250 co-main event, Pereira was knocked out by Ciryl Gane in round two, but the Brazilian believes the Frenchman utilized illegal punches to the back of his head to win the heavyweight title.
The former light heavyweight and middleweight champ has consistently berated Dean over that stoppage, as well as subsequent mistakes at UFC events.
After failing to make history in Washington, DC, ‘Poatan’ immediately went on the offensive with his reaction to the loss.
Pereira called Herb Dean a ‘coward’ and insisted he will never fight with the veteran official as the third man inside the Octagon ever again.
The Brazilian toned down his attacks during a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, admitting that he felt bad after seeing Dean getting booed at UFC events.
He did, however, still make a new suggestion for how Dean and his fellow refs can improve.
“Sometimes the referees should take a look at the card and say, ‘Let me take a look at how these guys behave,'” Pereira said.
“‘This guy has a record of eye pokes, low blows, elbows. OK, so I gotta stay on top of this guy. And this guy right here, when he usually knocks guys out, he gives three, four or five other heavy shots, so I gotta stay on top of this guy.’
“Just like when you’re a lawyer, you’ve gotta keep studying the law because it gets updated,” he continued. “The guys gotta look up the card before and see what type of fighter they’re dealing with to not have problems.
“It’s important for you guys to study, look who you’re working with, and pay attention to them.”
It remains to be seen who will be officiating Pereira’s return against Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 335 this December, but it seems certain not to be Dean.