Alex Pereira blasts ‘Coward’ Herb Dean after UFC Freedom 250 loss: “He is not a real man”
Poatan’ Alex Pereira has accused Ciryl Gane of landing illegal shots to the back of his head in the finishing sequence of his second-round TKO loss to Gane at UFC Freedom 250, while also blasting referee Herb Dean for not stepping in sooner. Pereira says he warned Dean before the fight and believes the sequence changed how the round played out. Even going so far as calling the referee a coward, not a man, and added that he deserves punishment.
Alex Pereira says he has “no respect” for Herb Dean after Ciryl Gane defeat
In a video released after the event, the 38-year-old Pereira said he had been concerned about Gane’s history before the bout and raised the issue with the referee in advance. He said, “I think if it weren’t for those punches, I wouldn’t be in that situation,” and added that the shots were “very hard and illegal”.
The Brazilian athlete also said Dean was in position to see the strikes and should have stopped the action. “Man, it’s the regulations. It’s in the rulebook. You’re wrong if you don’t stop [the illegal strikes]. That’s in the rules,” Poatan said.
The controversy centers on the ground-and-pound sequence after Gane dropped the 38-year-old athlete with a jab in the second round. Pereira said multiple elbows and punches landed on the back of his head while he was trying to recover.
Pereira viewed strikes to the back of the head as different from accidental fouls like eye pokes or groin shots, which he said can happen in a fast exchange. Pereira singled out Dean for failing to prevent the sequence and said Gane “wanted to end the fight no matter what.”
The Unified Rules of MMA ban strikes to the back of the head and spine, with the illegal target area defined around the crown and centerline of the head. Pereira argued that the referee’s job is to stop those shots when they happen, especially if he had already flagged the issue before the bout.
Poatan’s comments were harsh. He said Dean “is not a real man,” called him a “coward,” and said he should be punished. He even said there should be “legal consequences” for what happened.
The loss ended the Brazilian’s bid to become the UFC’s first three-division champion, which gave the complaint even more weight. Pereira has made clear he wants accountability, and he believes the fight should have been handled differently from the moment the foul sequence began.
