McCarthy Blasts Miragliotta Over UFC Vegas 123 Stand-Up

Referee Dan Miragliotta made the wrong call at UFC Vegas 123, according to Hall of Fame official John McCarthy.

Miragliotta stood up Renato Moicano from back control in the second round of Saturday's main event against Tom Nolan, a decision that drew immediate criticism across the sport. Moicano had controlled Nolan with back control and a body triangle through most of the first round, then secured the same position midway through the second before Miragliotta waved the fighters back to their feet. Nolan hurt Moicano moments later and went on to stop him in the third round.

Why McCarthy Says Back Control Stand-Ups Break MMA's Core Rules

McCarthy addressed the controversy on his Weighing In podcast Monday, per MMA Fighting, explaining that back control represents the highest position in mixed martial arts and should rarely if ever be interrupted. "You've gotten to a position where your opponent can't finish you, but you can finish your opponent, and that's what our sport is about," McCarthy said. He noted Moicano threw 20 to 25 strikes in the final minute before the stand-up, evidence the Brazilian was working toward a finish rather than stalling.

The veteran referee suggested Miragliotta's thinking centered on giving Moicano enough time to finish from the position across two rounds, then forcing a reset when no submission came. "That's not your responsibility. That's not your job," McCarthy said. "Your job is to be fair, and the true factor in this is, you're being completely unfair to one fighter, because he is doing things."

McCarthy, who wrote many of the unified rules still used in MMA and runs the sport's leading officiating course, said Miragliotta violated a core principle he teaches referees. "You cannot make a bad fight good, but you can definitely make a good fight bad," he said. He added that stand-ups should only occur when the fighter in control is stalling, and that back control stoppages require extreme circumstances such as four and a half minutes of zero activity in a static seatbelt position.

Miragliotta has not publicly addressed the decision. Moicano and Nolan are both expected to return to the Octagon in early 2027.

Reported via:

• MMA Fighting — ‘Big’ John McCarthy on referee Dan Miragliotta’s controversial stand-up at UFC Vegas 123: ‘That’s not your job’