Veteran mixed martial arts referee “Big” John McCarthy will oversee UFC 183’s middleweight main event between former champion Anderson Silva and returning star Nick Diaz.
The Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) voted unanimously to approve McCarthy’s appointment at a Monday commission meeting in Las Vegas, NV.
Known as one of the pioneering referees of the sport, McCarthy was an absent presence in Nevada from 2007 until mid-2014 largely due to squabbles with the NAC, in particular former commission Executive Director Keith Kizer. McCarthy was ultimately relicensed this past August, and oversaw several UFC fights to close out the year, including Tim Kennedy’s controversial loss to Yoel Romero at UFC 178.
McCarthy will now be in charge of officiating Silva’s first fight back following the gruesome leg injury that sidelined the record-breaking champion for the better part of a year.
Nevada regulars Sal D’Amato, Marcos Rosales, Glenn Trowbridge all were unanimously approved by the NAC to judge the contest, which takes place Jan. 31 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV and airs live on pay-per-view. An updated UFC 183 fight card can be seen below.
Main Card (Pay-per-view)
Nick Diaz vs. Anderson Silva
Kelvin Gastelum vs. Tyron Woodley
Al Iaquinta vs. Joe Lauzon
Tim Boetsch vs. Thales Leites
Thiago Alves vs. Jordan Mein
Preliminary Card (FOX Sports 1)
Sara McMann vs. Miesha Tate
Derek Brunson vs. Ed Herman
John Lineker vs. Ian McCall
Rafael Natal vs. Tom Watson
Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass)
Diego Brandao vs. Jimy Hettes
Ildemar Alcantara vs. Richardson Moreira
Andy Enz vs. Thiago Santos