After agreeing with Poatan, Volkanovski backtracks and asks for patience with UFC referees: 'They are human'.

Herb Dean and Alex Poatan at a UFC event. Photo: Reproduction/Twitter

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Even more than a week later, the controversy surrounding the duel between Alex Poatan and Ciryl Gane at the White House continues to rage. Like several other prominent names in the world of MMA, Alexander Volkanovski has publicly given his opinion on the fight, which ended in the second round with a knockout victory for the Frenchman. Despite acknowledging the role of referee Herb Dean in the situation, the current Ultimate featherweight champion (up to 65,7 kg) also made it clear that the case needs to be addressed with seriousness and respect. He spoke about the matter in a video published on YouTube last Tuesday (23).

In the fight, valid for the interim heavyweight title (up to 120,2 kg), Gane landed blows to the back of the Brazilian's neck after taking him down in the second round. Despite getting back to his feet, the Pataxó Indian was knocked out a few seconds later. According to Volkanovski, even though Dean made mistakes by not alerting Gane about the illegal blows during the fight, it is not fair for the event to become a carte blanche to offend and unleash hatred against the referee, a well-known figure in the organization for over 20 years.

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“People are too hard on the referees. We should be able to point out their mistakes, but without throwing hate at them, and we’re going to find ways to deal with these things. We’re going to have another conversation about this because we need to understand that these people are human, so we can’t hate Herb Dean,” he stated.

Alexander Volkanovski defends Herb Dean amid the backlash, reminding fans that referees are human and mistakes can happen.

"People are too hard on refs. We should be able to call them out for their mistakes, but not throw hate on them, and let's find ways to deal with those… pic.twitter.com/jNKEw0i1FG

— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) June 23, 2026

Poatan was outraged by Herb Dean's attitude.

Cyril Gane in victory against Alex Poatan at UFC Casa Branca . Photo: Reproduction.

Very upset by the way the fight with Gane ended, Poatan has been publicly demanding the referee's dismissal, even inciting support from other fighters in a possible boycott. Last Monday (22), he even hinted that he would hang up his gloves if the American was not punished.

"Honestly, I'm afraid to go back to fighting with all this going on, I think I've done my part," the fighter declared in a social media post.

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