Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor's fight at UFC 229 had a controversial aftermath, but there were also questions raised about what was happening inside the octagon.
There have been accusations fired at the 30-year-old Irishman for 'cheating' and breaking UFC's rules during the fight.
There are some people that are not happy with the Notorious being pulled up on his actions, with referee Herb Dean also being placed in the firing line for not acting on it.
Now, the 48-year-old American ref has posted two videos on his Instagram explaining why he didn't intervene.
"My job is to facilitate exciting and clean matches," he said (via GiveMeSport). "Not to intervene.
"Any time I intervene, I run the risk of artificially affecting the outcome of the fight.
Advert
Advert
"Even if I just talk to the fighter, I can distract him, he can take a shot, lose his position.
"Any time I see a foul, my job is to evaluate whether that is worth me intervening or not.
"Did it affect the fighter?
"In the Conor McGregor-Khabib fight, the fouls by Conor did not affect Khabib enough to warrant risking disadvantaging him by intervening."
The Russian fighter defeated McGregor in the fourth round to retain his UFC Lightweight Championship.
The Nevada Athletic Commission has temporarily suspended both fighters, while UFC president Dana White has revealed that McGregor wants a rematch with Khabib.
It's not stopped the Notorious from taking some time away from the octagon to turn up for Dallas Cowboys' match against Jacksonville Jaguars, but he might want to work on his ball-throwing technique.
Did Dean make the right call?
Let us know in the comments.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor Mcgregor, UFC 229, UFC News, UFC