New footage shows Pereira's coach screaming 'back of the head' at referee during Gane knockout loss

Newly released footage from the UFC White House event shows Alex Pereira’s head coach Plinio Cruz screaming ‘back of the head’ at referee Herb Dean in the moments Ciryl Gane stopped Pereira in the second round, adding fresh visual evidence to a controversy that has lingered since June.

Gane knocked out Pereira at the historic Washington D.C. card to claim the interim heavyweight title, a belt that subsequently became undisputed after Tom Aspinall vacated due to complications from eye injuries. The finish came after a damaging exchange in which Pereira’s team and the fighter himself alleged that Gane landed illegal strikes to the back of the head before the stoppage.

The UFC’s newly published corner footage places Cruz visibly and audibly in the frame, directing his protests at Dean as the sequence unfolded. The clip provides the clearest public record yet of how Pereira’s corner perceived the sequence in real time, even if no official action was taken by the referee during the fight.

Pereira has been outspoken in his criticism of Dean’s handling of the bout since the final bell. The Brazilian, nicknamed ‘Poatan’, is already targeting a return to the top of the division and a shot at history: he faces Sergei Pavlovich in the co-main event of UFC 335 in December, with a win potentially setting up a run at becoming the UFC’s first-ever three-division champion.

Gane, meanwhile, makes the first defence of his undisputed heavyweight title against Josh Hokit in the main event of UFC 334 on 14 November at Madison Square Garden in New York.