5 times Dana White was disgusted by a referee

UFC 236: Dana White during Holloway v Poirier 2

Dana White is not one to shy away from expressing his opinion, even if it comes at the expense of another person or organization. The UFC President can be a brutal critic of fighters, judges, athletic commissions and referees, especially if he perceives them to be damaging the UFC product somehow.

Post-fight press conferences present the best opportunity to see Dana White getting worked up about things that went wrong during a UFC event. UFC referees in particular have a penchant for angering White.

Nothing gets Dana White more angry than referees making mistakes during big fights. Let's take a look at five such instances when Dana White was disgusted by a referee.

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#5. Dana White vs. Steve Mazzagatti

Dana White often makes headlines when in an agitated state

One of Dana White's most memorable rants against a referee came a little after the TUF 19 finale concluded. The final bout, fought between Team Edgar's Ian Stephens and Team Penn's Roger Zapata, was full of warnings and controversies.

Rounds 1 and 2 were dominated by Ian Stephens but the spotlight was taken by Roger Zapata for getting multiple warnings by Steve Mazzagatti for holding on to the cage and landing illegal elbows. Despite Stephens’ obvious superiority, however, a round 3 was needed.

When the result went to the judges, they surprisingly awarded the win to Zapata. For Dana White, if anyone was to be blamed, it was referee Steve Mazzagatti.

Dana White later explained that while a single judge had scored the third round 10-9 in favor of Stephens, the other two judges had marked it 10-9 for Zapata. With the point deduction taking effect, the scores were 10-8 (Stephens), 9-9, 9-9 for round three.

The judges were then told to circle the name of the fighter they believed was the deserving winner. All three judges chose Zapata, making the UFC boss go after the referee. Dana White later discussed the "super controversial" decision and roasted referee Steve Mazzagatti for being ineffective. He told the media:

"It [the decision] was super controversial... I've had my issues with Steve Mazzagatti for a very long time. Don't know the guy personally... He's just not a good referee. A referee is a guy who is supposed to be in control of the fight the whole time. Not only are the fighters supposed to know what's going on but all the judges and fans are supposed to know what's going on. Nobody ever knows what's going on with Mazzagatti and his refereeing. The guy needs a lot more work before he ends up being in big fights on big stages and can affect peoples' careers and lives."

Dana White's opinion of Steve Mazzagatti has come to the fore quite often and the UFC President is not known for letting go of grudges easily. It's doubtful White will ever warm up to Steve Mazzagatti.

Read here: Everything to know about UFC Referees

#4. Dana White blasts Chris Tognoni at UFC Fight Night 177

Dana White during the Floyd Mayweather Jr. v Conor McGregor World Press Tour - New York

UFC Fight Night 177 saw as many finishes but it was the one involving light heavyweights Mike Rodriguez and Ed Herman that drove Dana White crazy. A huge oversight by referee Chris Tognoni caused the winner to lose and the loser to take home a submission win. Roasting the referee at the post-fight conference, Dana White said:

"That was some Mazzagatti level sh*t right there," Dana White said at the post-fight conference. "That was one of the worst things I’ve ever seen. That kid [Rodriguez] wins by knockout. Technical knockout, and loses the fight. It’s one of the worst things I’ve ever seen."

The incident occurred in round two of the fight when Mike Rodriguez seemingly struck Ed Herman in the groin. With Herman falling to the floor, Rodriguez followed protocol and walked away. However, it was later learnt through the replay that the strike was not to the groin but to Herman's right rib-cage.

What should have been a TKO victory for Rodriguez instead became a submission win for Herman later, but only because of referee Chris Tognoni's oversight.

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#3. Dana White calls Al Guinee "Arizona Mazzagatti" after late stoppage

Paul Craig reacts to his technical submission victory over Jamahal Hill during UFC 263

UFC president Dana White hit out at referee Al Guinee for a late stoppage in the Paul Craig vs. Jamahal Hill bout at UFC 263. The two fighters were set up for a fiery face-off following heated encounters in the build-up.

But when they finally met inside the Gila River Arena in Arizona, the fight lasted just less than two minutes. While underdog Paul Craig got his hand raised, Jamahal Hill almost got his broken.

With Craig putting an armlock on Hill, the latter's arm was quite visibly snapped and flopping all over. Paul Craig could sense it instantly as he later explained that Hill's hand was "like a wet fish dancing all over my body."

But apparently things weren't as obvious for referee Al Guinee.

The stoppage came a little late and drew criticism from fans and fighters alike. The one frustrated the most was Dana White, who said during the UFC 263 post-fight press conference:

"When an arm is flopping around like this and going both ways, you should probably stop the fight. I don’t want to sh*t on Arizona, they’ve been so good to us. But that’s a rough one. I heard this guy [Al Guinee] is a jiu-jitsu black belt."

After being told by the media that the referee had a reputation for making bad calls, Dana White jokingly called him the "Arizona Mazzagatti."

#2. Dana White hits out at Leon Roberts for "horrible stoppage" during Yan vs. Aldo fight

Petr Yan walks away after punishing Jose Aldo at UFC 251 | Image courtesy: Twitter @nypost

Dana White slammed referee Leon Roberts at the UFC 251 post-fight press conference. Jose Aldo and Petr Yan went to war for the UFC bantamweight title vacated by former champion Henry Cejudo. The first three rounds were pretty even but the narrative changed in the later rounds, with Yan landing a barrage of unanswered strikes on Aldo that warranted a stoppage.

Jose Aldo was turtled up during the last round and despite endless blows from the Russian, was doing little to nothing to improve his position or defend himself. Regardless, referee Leon Roberts allowed the fight to drag on until the 3:24 mark of round five before finally stepping in to stop the fight. Dana White, who believed it was a horrible instance of refereeing, said:

"Horrible, horrible stoppage by the referee. It should’ve been stopped way sooner, you know. It looks like we have to tighten up our refs and judges here in 'Fight Island.'"

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#1. Dana White calls Mario Yamasaki "disgusting"

Fighters Only World Mixed Martial Arts Awards 2011

Mario Yamasaki is perhaps one referee who has irked Dana White more than anyone, even Steve Mazzagatti. UFC boss slammed Yamasaki for his ineffective refereeing during the Valentina Schevchenko vs. Priscila Cachoeira fight in 2018. Shevchenko, who was a massive favorite going into the bout, dominated Cachoeira with ease before submitting her in round two.

While Yamasaki's delay in stopping 'Bullet' from punishing Cachoeira was enough to annoy Dana White, the former justifying his actions made things worse. The referee later said that he refrained from stopping the fight only to allow Priscila Cachoeira to be a warrior. When Dana White learned about this, he said:

"I think it's disgusting. I think he [Yamasaki] is disgusting and I never wanna see him reffing ever again... And she [Cachoeira] did fight like a warrior. For that idiot to say that he gave her the opportunity to be warrior. No. No, you moron. You're in there to protect her from herself. He makes me sick. That guy has no business reffing fights and I promise you, you're not going to see him again."

Mario Yamasaki has not been seen in the UFC octagon for quite some time. Fans should not expect that to change, after all, Dana White is not known for letting go of grudges so easily.