New UFC Footage Shows Alex Pereira’s Corner Screaming at Ref During Ciryl Gane Fight at White House

Four months have passed since Ciryl Gane stopped Alex Pereira at the historic UFC Freedom 250 event on the White House South Lawn. The second-round TKO loss still hurts because it broke Pereira's dream of becoming a three-division champion.

However, "Poatan" will face Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 335 on Dec. 12. Still, the UFC is not letting fans forget the drama of that June matchup. The promotion recently released official corner footage of the finish from both Pereira's and Gane's Corners, which has restarted the debate over whether Gane landed illegal ground strikes to the back of Pereira's head.

Alex Pereira and Ciryl Gane’s Coaches’ Reactions Revealed on Back-of-the-Head Shots

In the one-minute clip, Pereira's coach, Plinio Cruz, reacted with urgency as Gane chased the finish. Cruz could be seen repeatedly shouting, "That's back of the head, ref!" as the final sequence unfolded. Meanwhile, Gane's corner shouted with excitement right after the knockout.

Gane dropped Pereira with a jab early in the second round and followed up with heavy ground-and-pound strikes. Media analysis from Yahoo Sports counted as many as 11 finishing shots, with video proof indicating seven of those blows connected illegally to the back of Pereira's head.

The unpenalized strikes prompted Pereira and his team to dispute the outcome and demand a rematch to settle the score. Pereira released a detailed 15-minute video breaking down the loss, stating, "It was a lucky jab and he took advantage. That was the opportunity of a lifetime for him. This guy has a long history of it. Dirty shots, punches to the back of the head. I brought that up with the referee ahead of time and asked him to keep an eye on it.”

He added, “If you watch the footage, multiple shots, multiple elbows to the back of the head. Given everything that happened illegal, I was getting up. It became difficult to recover, but I believe that if it wasn't for those shots, I wouldn't be in that situation and could've possibly recovered."

Referee Herb Dean defended his stoppage in an Instagram video, while CSAC Executive Officer Andy Foster noted that Pereira's constant head movement during the scramble made it difficult to regulate exactly where the shots landed.

The controversy was always there, and it only intensified with time. While the new corner footage does not solve the legality question, it has added fuel to the fire. Referee Herb Dean has faced direct consequences from fans, receiving loud boos at several UFC events since June.

Now, Gane is scheduled to defend his heavyweight championship against Josh Hokit at UFC 334 on Nov. 14. Meanwhile, if "Poatan" can defeat Pavlovich on Dec. 12, a highly anticipated rematch between Gane and Pereira will likely become the biggest discussion in the division.