Was Herb Dean trying to influence the outcome of the main event?

[nonoob]

You can't blatantly allow cheating.

Was thinking about a proper response...

RRREEEEEEEEEEEEE !!!!!!!

 

[Uber_Noober]

Worst fn referee in the history of MMa
Set him out to pasture.. eat shit and live

Steve has entered the chat

 

[blaseblase]

Herb hasn't been good for probably 8 years. He was legitimately one of the best referees a decade ago and has been coasting off that reputation ever since.

 

[Chet Ubetcha]

I didn't get to watch last night. What happened here?

Sorry, I haven't been on the internet in a few days because of work. The incident in question was the kissing bit, but Herb called for the break and (from what I remember -- I admit I could be wrong) Sean cheap-shotted Merab in the back of the head while he was walking away before Dean called to resume the fight.

 

[PurpleStorm]

It's a tough job. Some of ya'all go off the deep end.

 

[NoSmilez]

Nah he wasn't trying to cheat for anyone. He is just anal and a little too strict. He called fouls for both men.

 

[Chet Ubetcha]

How was it a cheap shot? There was about 10 seconds on the clock when Merab opted to get up and Sean capitalized.

You’re never supposed to turn your back against an opponent and this is a prime example why.

I hate coming to the defense of o malley in any way, other than it being very near the back of the head.

The punch was legal.


And also hate coming to the defense of herb but he called the knees well.

Merab threw legal knees, o mally played the game to make them illegal by dropping.
Herb communicated that he was officially down to merab to avoid confusion.


Outside of that. The reffing was very bizarre.

It was his own fault. You can't turn your back as defence. If a fighter runs away backwards and you happen to catch them, it's on them.

Merab with ground knees is going to be scary. I think he starts finishing fights from the headlock position when that rule comes in.

Sorry, I've been working my remaining leg off at work and just getting back on here this week. The way I remember it (and will accept being corrected if wrong) was that Dean called the break after the kissing thing, and O'Malley ran after him and hit him before Herb resumed the fight. If that is the case, it was absolutely an illegal cheap shot. If Herb was just chastising Merab for the kissing and didn't actually break the fight, then you are all absolutely right and is what is.

I'll concede the knee thing, though it's obviously inconsistently officiated between being penalized and let go as "the game".

 

[maximus__]

Sorry, I've been working my remaining leg off at work and just getting back on here this week. The way I remember it (and will accept being corrected if wrong) was that Dean called the break after the kissing thing, and O'Malley ran after him and hit him before Herb resumed the fight. If that is the case, it was absolutely an illegal cheap shot. If Herb was just chastising Merab for the kissing and didn't actually break the fight, then you are all absolutely right and is what is.

I'll concede the knee thing, though it's obviously inconsistently officiated between being penalized and let go as "the game".

Merab came out and said this is what he thought, but he still got up and walked away to his corner. I am guessing he thought the round was actually over because he started doing it after the 10 second clapper.

Same with the yoghurt thing in the last round. Sean just finally threw a shot that connected and got Merab in a bad spot. he didn't eat a yoghurt, he just got winded. he wasn't hurt to the body, he just moved until he got his air back. The second shot didn't hurt nearly as much.

If you drop to a knee mid strike and cop a knee that's on you. People doing that should be a shot or two from having the fight stopped. Intentionally throwing yourself into an illegal strike is not intelligent defence.

 

[Nathan LaMontagne]

Sorry, I've been working my remaining leg off at work and just getting back on here this week. The way I remember it (and will accept being corrected if wrong) was that Dean called the break after the kissing thing, and O'Malley ran after him and hit him before Herb resumed the fight. If that is the case, it was absolutely an illegal cheap shot. If Herb was just chastising Merab for the kissing and didn't actually break the fight, then you are all absolutely right and is what is.

I'll concede the knee thing, though it's obviously inconsistently officiated between being penalized and let go as "the game".

Oh completely agreed, if Herb did cause a break then of course, super illegal and should be a DQ right there or at least a point.

I don't think he did actually say to break, but I'm only about 60% sure on that.

I assume Herb was stating that the round wasn't over.

Anyone with a better memory that can confirm.

 

[tritestill]

The two most egregious things tonight to me were Herb telling Mareb that Sean's cheapshot during the break was his own fault, so he apparently felt it was ok to let it go (which should have been a DQ, honestly), and then making up for it by allowing the obvious knee to the head of a downed O'Malley (which Herb even called out!). Both should have been points, at minimum, and possibly fight-enders.

What cheap shot during what break? Are you talking about when Merab let him go and there was still time in the round?

 

[Chet Ubetcha]

What cheap shot during what break? Are you talking about when Merab let him go and there was still time in the round?

Yes, that's it. Check the previous posts just above for further thoughts on it.

 

[yossarian1979]

I could be dead wrong here, it's been ages, but if I recall correctly, I think Herb was the judge of Rumble vs Belfort. Rumble missed weight, he already had a few previous weight misses, and he would take Belfort down, then almost 20 seconds later Herb would stand it up. I remember thinking Rumble was getting punished for missing weight.
Someone tell me if I'm right on this, it's been forever, and I didn't double check on this.

 

[Gamer2k4]

I could be dead wrong here, it's been ages, but if I recall correctly, I think Herb was the judge of Rumble vs Belfort. Rumble missed weight, he already had a few previous weight misses, and he would take Belfort down, then almost 20 seconds later Herb would stand it up. I remember thinking Rumble was getting punished for missing weight.
Someone tell me if I'm right on this, it's been forever, and I didn't double check on this.

I just checked, and Miragliotta was the ref for that one. Rumble's first takedown got stood up after about a minute of doing nothing at all (there were maybe five punches and a shoulder strike). His next takedown attempt was separated after about 40 seconds of leaning against Belfort on the cage and not really advancing. Then there was another takedown, which was stood up after 40 seconds or so of Rumble mostly getting his arms trapped by Belfort. (Here, Joe remarked that the ref was standing them up surprisingly quickly.) By this point it was nearing the end of the round and Rumble was too exhausted to do much else, so Vitor was able to hit the choke.

The standups were more frequent that I'm used to seeing in a fight, but they weren't egregious. Rumble really was doing nothing from his positions; whether that was lay and pray or good defense by Belfort is up for debate, but there's no question Rumble was very inactive. My guess is he had a bad weight cut and a bad gas tank, and was hoping to win through top control and nothing else. Of course, it didn't work.

 

[Gamer2k4]

Oh completely agreed, if Herb did cause a break then of course, super illegal and should be a DQ right there or at least a point.

I don't think he did actually say to break, but I'm only about 60% sure on that.

I assume Herb was stating that the round wasn't over.

Anyone with a better memory that can confirm.

Just rewatched it. Herb said, "Hey, stop that!" and Merab stood up, patted O'Malley on the shoulder, and walked casually away like he thought it was the end of the round. It's mostly on him for not being careful, and he agreed with that when Herb mentioned it to him just after the round was over.

That said, Herb was kind of at fault too. He saw O'Malley running down Merab and let out a couple of "hey"s along with a halfhearted attempted to stick his arm between them. He should have either stepped back and let it play out or actively inserted himself to establish a proper break. He did neither.

 

[yossarian1979]

I just checked, and Miragliotta was the ref for that one. Rumble's first takedown got stood up after about a minute of doing nothing at all (there were maybe five punches and a shoulder strike). His next takedown attempt was separate after about 40 seconds of leaning against Belfort on the cage and not really advancing. Then there was another takedown, which was stood up after 40 seconds or so of Rumble mostly getting his arms trapped by Belfort. (Here, Joe remarked that the ref was standing them up surprisingly quickly.) By this point it was nearing the end of the round and Rumble was too exhausted to do much else, so Vitor was able to hit the choke.

The standups were more frequent that I'm used to seeing in a fight, but they weren't egregious. Rumble really was doing nothing from his positions; whether that was lay and pray or good defense by Belfort is up for debate, but there's no question Rumble was very inactive. My guess is he had a bad weight cut and a bad gas tank, and was hoping to win through top control and nothing else. Of course, it didn't work.

I appreciate you for this my bro! I felt uncertain on my memory for that one. Thank you for clearing that up for me!