UFC 194 News: Referees And Judges Selected For Aldo-McGregor And Weidman-Rockhold Fights
The referees and judges who will oversee the main event and co-main event fights at UFC 194 have been selected.
In a report by MMA Fighting, the men who will be taking over the officiating duties for the December 12 fight card at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas are the business' veterans who have been involved with the biggest fights in the UFC.
Tasked to be the third man on the ring for the featherweight unification bout between champion José Aldo and interim title holder Conor McGregor is veteran referee "Big" John McCarthy.
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According to his profile on Tapology, the 53-year old McCarthy has been involved with mixed martial arts since his appointment to officiate fights at UFC 2 in March 1994.
Having had a stint as a police officer with the Los Angeles Police Department, which began in 1985, he went on to be a Tactics & Self-Defense instructor, wherein he received his certificate in 1993.
As far as his martial arts background goes, McCarthy began training Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under the renowned Gracie family in California in the early 90's. He received his much-coveted black belt in 2007.
The three judges tasked to score the main event bout are Las Vegas regulars Sal D'Amato, Derek Cleary, and Junichiro Kamijo. Cleary began his stint as an MMA judge in 2012, at UFC 145. His most notable fight was the flyweight title rematch between Demetrious Johnson and John Dodson at UFC 191 in September.
D'Amato began his career in 2007, at WEC 27. He has judged some of the UFC's biggest bouts, including the recent title fight between light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier and Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 192 in October.
Kamijo is a newcomer in the MMA judging business, having begun his career in January. He has already worked on a total of nine UFC fights.
Meanwhile, another long-time official will be refereeing the co-main event bout between Chris Weidman and Luke Rockhold. Herb Dean, who is a former fighter himself, will be officiating the said fight.
Dean is most notably known for stopping the 2004 bout between heavyweights Tim Sylvia and Frank Mir. Mir had already locked in an armbar on Sylvia, and Dean stopped the fight in the nick of time, before further damage was inflicted on Sylvia's arm.
