UFC 289 official assignments: All you should know about the referee and judges for the main event between Amanda Nunes and Irene Aldana

The referees and judges for UFC 289 have been announced.

On June 10, the UFC is holding an eleven-fight event inside the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada. In the main event, Amanda Nunes looks to defend her UFC women’s bantamweight championship against Irene Aldana, who is filling in for the injured Julianna Pena.

Over the past week, several judges and the MMA judging criteria have received backlash after a controversial decision in the UFC Vegas 74 main event. It turns out things could get interesting in the UFC 289 main event, as the same three judges from Kai Kara-France vs. Amir Albazi have been assigned for Nunes vs. Aldana.

Scott Fontana of the New York Post confirmed the details on Twitter:

“Official assignments for tonight's #UFC289 main event been champion Amanda Nunes and Irene Aldana for the UFC women's bantamweight title Referee: Dan Miragliotta Judges: Sal D'Amato, Mike Bell, Chris Lee”

Out of the three judges from last week, Chris Lee received the most criticism for giving Albazi the fourth round, leading to the split decision loss for Kara-France. Fans and fighters pleaded on social media for Lee to be reprimanded or explain his scorecard. Only time will tell if the latest main event ends up with another controversial decision.

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What other referees and judges are working at UFC 289?

UFC 289 features several intriguing matchups, including Charles Oliveira vs. Beneil Dariush, Dan Ige vs. Nate Landwehr, and Nassourdine Imavov vs. Chris Curtis. The specific judges and referees for each fight have not been confirmed, but the general people working the event are official.

Scott Fontana of the New York Post made the announcement with a follow-up message on Twitter:

“Other officials working #UFC289 beyond the main event: Referees: Jason Herzog, Mitch Cadlick, Phil Koldyk Judges: Jake Maxim, Jason Darrah Both: Jerin Valel, John Cooper, Sal Ram Only traveling officials on the PPV main card (including Valel, a Canadian)”

There have been some slight criticisms toward the star power featured on the UFC 289 main card. With that said, the underrated fight cards are sometimes the ones that produce. It’ll be intriguing to see how the UFC’s return to Canada plays out.