McCarthy says referee's stand-up call handed Nolan unfair advantage over Moicano at UFC Vegas 123

Veteran MMA referee ‘Big’ John McCarthy has accused UFC official Dan Miragliotta of handing Tom Nolan an undeserved advantage by ordering a stand-up while Renato Moicano held dominant back control during their second-round clash at UFC Vegas 123.

Speaking on the Weighing In podcast with Josh Thomson, McCarthy argued that Miragliotta’s intervention was not only unnecessary but fundamentally unfair to Moicano, who had secured a body triangle and was actively landing strikes while hunting for a rear-naked choke at the time of the stoppage.

“When you look at why did Dan stand them up, I think Dan looked at it as, ‘We’ve had this position now a good portion of this fight and nothing’s happened — let’s get some action into it,’” McCarthy said. “He stands them up, and it’s completely unfair to one fighter — Moicano. Moicano earned that position. He worked for that position. It’s not an easy position to get to, and once he gets to it, it’s his to have.”

McCarthy acknowledged that Miragliotta was likely motivated by a desire to increase the pace of the fight, but he was firm that generating action is not within a referee’s remit — particularly when the fighter in the dominant position is demonstrably working toward a finish.

“If you go back and look, the last minute he was on Nolan’s back before the stand-up, he had to have thrown 20, 25 strikes,” McCarthy said. “Why is he doing that? He’s working toward a finish.”

While stopping short of questioning Miragliotta’s intentions, McCarthy was unequivocal about the competitive impact of the call. “We don’t give advantages to one fighter over another,” he said. “He gave a great advantage to Tom Nolan, and took an advantage away from Moicano.”

The criticism from McCarthy, one of the most respected voices in MMA officiating, adds to broader scrutiny of how referees manage grappling exchanges in the UFC, particularly when a fighter in a controlling position is penalised for failing to secure a finish quickly enough.