by 
The UFC’s schedule for 2024 has been set.
The past year has been busy and booming not only for fighters, promoters and trainers, but also for referees. The UFC held events in nine U.S. jurisdictions (California, Florida, Kentucky, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, Texas and Utah) and nine international countries (Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Macau, Mexico, Saudi Arabia). , United States). Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom).
Within 12 months, the UFC promoted 42 events. Fifty referees were used at these shows – an increase of 8.7 percent compared to the number of referees used (46) at 43 events in 2023.
As officials and locations have become more diversified, the number of fights officiated by last year’s frontrunners has declined on an individual basis, with the exception of the frontrunner, who fought the exact same number of fights year after year.
Below is a complete list of all referees who refereed at least one UFC fight in 2024 (in alphabetical order by last name). The list does not include fights from Dana White’s Contender Series, “Road to UFC” or “The Ultimate Fighter.” The data was calculated using the comprehensive MMA database Tapology:
Todd Anderson, Brian Beauchamp, Mike Beltran, Nick Berens, Lukasz Bosacki, Luke Boutin, Christophe Chapuis, Joe Coca, George Conley, Gary Copeland, Mark Craig, Herb Dean, Thomas Fan, Andrew Glenn, Marc Goddard, Blake Grice, Kerry Hatley , Jason Herzog, Greg Kleynjans, Kevin MacDonald, Osiris Maia, Eric McMahon, Dan Miragliotta, Rich Mitchell, Rob Mooney, Jacob Montalvo, Daniel Movahedi, Joel Ojeda, Gasper Oliver, Keith Peterson, Steve Perceval, Jim Perdios, Loic Pora, Fernando Portella, Bladmir Puga, Vitor Ribeiro, Matthew Rocham, Jonathan Romero, Fernando Salas, Kevin Sataki, Dave Seljestad, Joao Claudio Soares, Andy Social , Mark Smith, Josh Stewart, Chris Tognoni, Tyler Tomlinson, Frank Trigg, Jerin Valel and Matt Wynne.
Nine officials listed above officiated a double-digit number of bouts for promotion. Which of these referees did the UFC use most often in 2024? Scroll through the list below to find out.
9: Kerry Hatley (14)
Texas-based referee Kerry Hatley just broke the double-digit threshold with just over a dozen UFC fights officiated in 2024. Hatley has also been one of the main officials of the Power Slap promotion since its inception.
8: Dan Miragliotta (23)
Dan Miragliotta, one of the longest-serving referees in MMA, comes in at No. 8. In 2025, Miragliotta will celebrate the 18th anniversary of his UFC debut as a referee, which took place at UFC 78 in November 2007.
7: Keith Peterson (34)
Keith Peterson saw a decline in UFC fights refereed in 2024. However, Tapology’s data shows that he may have been the most active referee of anyone on this list when it came to overall fights officiated, not just the UFC.
6: Mike Beltran (38)
Mike Beltran returned to office in 2024 after being sidelined for much of 2023 due to a health crisis. It was a welcome sight to see the man with the most infamous mustache in MMA back in action as he ranked No. 6 overall.
4 (draw): Jason Herzog, Chris Tognoni (52)
Fourth place was a tie between veteran officials Jason Herzog and Chris Tognoni. Both men have established themselves as the most used officials year after year.
3: Herb Dean (53)
Herb Dean, arguably the most recognizable face of all time in the MMA officiating world, comes in at No. 3, the lowest ranking he has reached since MMA Junkie began tracking it in 2020. However, Dean has still been incredibly busy in 2024, as he is frequently used in promotions around the world – not just UFC.
2: Marc Goddard (55)
Despite refereeing one fewer fight than he did in 2023, Marc Goddard is moving up the power rankings, landing at No. 2 for the first time since MMA Junkie began tracking in 2020. Goddard is one of the most frequently used referees.
1: Mark Smith (65)
Mark Smith maintains his place as the UFC’s most used official, a title he first secured in 2023 when he also officiated 65 fights. Smith is a mainstay of the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC), where he is frequently deployed to events in Las Vegas.
Check out last year’s rankings:
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Leading Third Men: The 9 Referees Who Officiated the Most UFC Fights in 2024
