Former UFC bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw was among the UFC 306 viewers who were confused by Herb Dean’s constant calls for main eventers Sean O’Malley and Merab Dvalishvili to “keep working.”
Dean interjected himself into the evening’s headliner almost immediately after Dvalishvili and O’Malley’s coach, Tim Welch’ began jawing at one another. Not long after that, Dean had to admonish ‘The Machine’ for, of all things, kissing O’Malley on the back during a grappling exchange.
Unfortunately, Dean’s intrusions didn’t stop there. During the championship rounds, the tenured referee continuously prompted both fighters to “work” despite Dvalishvili being in a dominant grappling position for much of the contest. Even in the fifth round as O’Malley appeared to hurt Dvalishvili with a front kick to the body and was in hot pursuit of the knockout shot, Dean could be heard repeating “work” over and over bringing frustration to fans watching at home, and the commentary trio consisting of Jon Anik, Joe Rogan, and Daniel Cormier.
During an appearance on the JAXXON podcast with Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, Dillashaw shared his disgust over Dean’s officiating and accused him of refereeing in a way that seemingly favored O’Malley.
“It’s complete bullsh*t,” Dillashaw said. “You can’t tell two fighters to work when they’re on their feet. I could run circles if I wanted to. You can’t tell me to go and work. … It’s not like I’m stalling against the cage. We’re striking, and you’re telling me to work. Like, I might run into something now ’cause you’re coaching me on how I am supposed to fight. The ref shouldn’t be involved like that.
“I thought it was very weird. It was almost like he had money on O’Malley,” Dillashaw continued. “(It was) like he wanted Merab to keep going so O’Malley could catch him with something. It was weird” (h/t MMA News).
sean O’Malley Looking at 6-8 Month Layoff following UFC 306 Loss
UFC 306 inside Sphere was a spectacle unlike any other in combat sports history. Sadly, very little of the post-event conversation has surrounded the impeccable production. Instead, much of it has focused on Dean’s confusing calls for action and Sean O’Malley’s uninspired performance throughout the 25-minute affair.
Though, to be fair, ‘Sugar’ recently revealed that he suffered a torn labrum 10 weeks out from fight night, an injury serious enough that it will see him undergo surgery on October 3.
“I have surgery on Oct. 3,” O’Malley revealed. “I tore my left labrum in my hip. That’s the only reason I’m going to be out for so long. This surgery should only take two months to come back from, then a couple months recovery. A year is a long time, could be six to eight months. You never know.”
Still, O’Malley is not using that as an excuse and instead will chalk it up to a bad night at the office. O’Malley is expected to sit on the sidelines for the next 6-8 months while the bantamweight division moves on without him.
