Herb Dean invited fresh backlash after he made a controversial stoppage during the King Green vs. Esteban Ribovics fight on the UFC 332 main card. The veteran referee’s decision drew a sharp reaction from the likes of Dana White, who wasn’t a fan of Dean’s call. But amid the ongoing criticism, Dean found some backing from Israel Adesanya.

The former two-time middleweight champion reacted to the UFC 332 fight on his YouTube video alongside his father. Adesanya took note of Dean’s restraint during the closing sequence of Green vs. Ribovics and applauded the referee for his handling of the fight.

“Good job on the ref, though,” Adesanya said when Ribovics dropped Green for the second time in the first round. “The ref did well pulling back from that one. Cause he was about to jump in and pull back. And now we get to see this.”  

Moments later, Adesanya watched the Argentine knock down Green for the third time and unleash a barrage of punches on the ground. Referee Herb Dean leapt in to stop the contest 4:08 in Round 1. However, Green’s immediate protest drew a boastful reaction from Ribovics, which compelled the longtime official to grab the Argentine and push him away to avert further escalation. 

During the commotion, Ribovics nearly fell out of the Octagon, but the referee hauled him back. Even though the scene looked utterly chaotic, Israel Adesanya believes the referee’s stoppage was clean and fair.

“He’s good,” Adesanya added. “He’s good. Okay, that’s it. That’s the third. Stop. What was that? That’s it… Okay, good. I thought we were gonna… that was fair. That was clean.”    

Israel Adesanya showing support for Herb Dean definitely comes from a point. Despite Green not being completely out, Ribovics knocked him down for the third time in the first round. After the third knockdown, Dean perhaps sensed that a finish was imminent, so he swiftly stepped in to spare Green from absorbing further punishment.

Another factor that could have influenced Herb Dean decision that he likely felt Green wasn’t defending himself properly while Ribovics rained down punches on him, which prompted him to stop the contest. In that case, Adesanya’s backing for the controversial referee isn’t too out of place. 

Herb Dean has been embroiled in several controversies throughout his career. But this seems to be the first time Adesanya has publicly defended the veteran ref. However, there was a previous instance when Adesanya himself was a little critical of Dean’s officiating. 

Adesanya faced Derek Brunson at UFC 230 in a highly heated middleweight showdown. Both fighters talked plenty of trash about each other, and the fight played out that way. During the bout, ‘The Last Stylebender’ complained to Herb Dean that Brunson was grabbing his shorts during the wrestling exchanges.

The long-time referee warned Brunson about the foul, but didn’t cut a point. At the post-fight presser, Adesanya even said, “Did Herb see that? Alright,” regarding Brunson committing the foul.

However, King Green, who was on the bitter end of Dean’s stoppage in the UFC 332 clash, seems to be in no mood to forgive the ref anytime soon.

King Green breaks silence on Herb Dean’s stoppage at UFC 332 

Right after his UFC 332 fight, King Green took to Instagram Live to share his thoughts on the abrupt stoppage. The UFC veteran clarified that he wasn’t totally incapable of continuing the fight, and he is visibly furious with Herb Dean for stopping it prematurely.

“Wow, oh wow. Sheesh. Man, great fight, s—t happens,” Green said. “I told myself regardless or not, I’m not going to be mad at myself, but I’m a little mad. I told Herb, this is going to get sticky. Let me go on my shield. I was still fine. I wanted still to keep fighting. I felt like we were getting somewhere. But it was a great fight.

“Shout out to everybody that supported me, everybody who was cheering me on. I love you guys, I’m fine, I feel like I want a fight next f—ing week. Thank you guys very much for the support. I love you guys, and I will be back very soon.” 

Green’s disdain toward Dean’s stoppage stemmed from the heated build-up to the fight. Ribovics missed the lightweight limit by 0.5, coming in at 156.5 in the official weigh-ins, and later bumped into Green’s team at the fighters’ hotel. Both camps had a brief altercation, with Green’s team urging Ribovics to stay professional.

Because of the heated rivalry, Green wanted to go out on his own terms, which Herb Dean’s stoppage denied him. However, despite the official facing heat for his latest stoppage, the support he received from Israel Adesanya indicates that there is definitely some merit to his UFC 332 decision.