5 of the most outrageous refereeing errors in UFC history

#4. John McCarthy – Murilo Bustamante vs. Matt Lindland (UFC 37)

Referee John McCarthy made a major gaffe in the UFC middleweight title clash between Murilo Bustamante and Matt Lindland

‘Big’ John McCarthy is usually recognized as the best referee in MMA history and to have officiated in the UFC. He made his first appearance in the octagon at UFC 2 and, over the years, he’s officiated some of the biggest fights in the promotion’s history.

However, even greats like ‘Big John’ can make mistakes. His most egregious took place at UFC 37 and could well have cost a champion his title had things gone slightly differently.

The fight in question saw Murilo Bustamante defend his UFC middleweight title against top contender Matt Lindland in a highly anticipated bout.

However, as the fight began, it became clear that Bustamante was far more skilled than his opponent. The Brazilian appeared to have Lindland finished when he applied a picture-perfect armbar.

‘The Law’ seemed to tap out to the hold and McCarthy stepped in to stop the fight. However, once he’d separated the fighters, Lindland claimed that he hadn’t tapped and, somehow, ‘Big John’ was sold.

He decided to restart the fight, confusing Bustamante hugely and leaving him looking disheartened and potentially vulnerable to an attack from Lindland. Thankfully though, justice was served. Bustamante regrouped in the second round and continued to dominate ‘The Law’ before submitting him with a guillotine choke in the third round.

This time there was no question around the submission and when McCarthy stepped in, the fight was declared over for good. Quite how he’d gotten so confused in the first round, however, remains anyone’s guess, making this one of the worst referee gaffes in UFC history.

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#3. Eduardo Herdy – Leandro Silva vs. Drew Dober (UFC Fight Night 62)

Drew Dober's fight with Leandro Silva was bizarrely stopped by referee Eduardo Herdy in a major gaffe

It takes a serious referee error to force one of the various athletic commissions overseeing the UFC to overturn a result and declare a no contest. However, that’s exactly what happened in the fight between Leandro Silva and Drew Dober at UFC Fight Night 62.

The fight was refereed by an inexperienced official, Brazilian Eduardo Herdy, who had rarely been seen in the UFC prior to this event. Based on his performance here, it was easy to understand why.

After a close first round, the second saw Dober taken down by Silva, who then attempted to lock up a guillotine choke after a scramble. However, the choke didn’t look tight and Dober quickly moved into the Brazilian’s half-guard and began to work to free his head from the hold.

Incredibly though, just as Dober appeared to have popped his head free, Herdy stepped in to call off the fight, apparently believing that Silva had choked his foe unconscious.

Naturally, confusion followed, before Dober was left irate once he realized what’d happened. Quite how Herdy had believed he’d passed out was anyone’s guess, as he was clearly still moving and there was no hint of a tapout, either.

Thankfully, the fight was eventually declared a no contest by the Brazilian MMA Athletic Commission and Dober was even paid his win bonus by the UFC, which somewhat made up for this serious refereeing mistake.