When you’re a referee in any sport, criticism kind of comes with the territory. After two decades on the job, MMA ref Mario Yamasaki is taking his freshest batch of it in stride.

Yamasaki saw himself at the center of yet another controversy on June 25, when a first-round stoppage of UFC Fight Night 112’s lightweight headliner between Kevin Lee (16-2 MMA, 9-2 UFC) and Michael Chiesa (14-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) sparked some doubts.

While Lee did seem to have the rear-naked choke secured – and later stood by the finish and the ref’s call (check out the video above) – Chiesa never tapped or verbally submitted.

Chiesa was quick to express his outrage. While still up in the octagon, he said Yamasaki should be fired. Later, he went off on the ref, firmly stating that he was still defending himself. UFC President Dana White shared Chiesa’s wrath and compared Yamasaki to his notoriously least favorite ref, Steve Mazzagatti.

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A few weeks later, Yamasaki has had enough time to go back on the events of that evening. And he’s standing by his call.

“It would have been easier to just have let it go on,” Yamasaki told MMAjunkie. “But the rule is clear, and when the fighters stop defending themselves intelligently, the referee must defend them. They don’t have to tap. As soon as he went out, I intervened. I’ve been in this business for over 20 years, and I know what I saw.”

Chiesa, in turn, maintains he never lost consciousness – as stated in the formal appeal he later filed with the Oklahoma State Athletic Commission. The lightweight also noted other alleged oversights made by Yamasaki during the scrap and cited past mistakes by the ref to substantiate his official filing.

Whether the commission might end up overturning the fight, Yamasaki doesn’t think is his place to tell. But he both trusts the commission’s process and defends Chiesa’s right to seek due diligence.

“The athletic commission has already gotten in touch with me so I can respond to what happened,” Yamasaki said. “I think he’s within his right to appeal. Chiesa is a great athlete, certainly one of the best in the world. The commission will assess what happened,, and I’m certain they’ll make the best possible decision.

“Our intention is not to harm anyone. I’ll keep doing my job ethically and certain of what is correct. That’s why I’ve stayed there for years.”

Yamasaki is understanding when it comes to Chiesa’s in-octagon outburst. Considering all the training put into that one moment, he said, the eventual hot-headed reaction is to be expected – and it’s part of the ref’s job to understand people respond to things differently.

And as far as the criticism – including the UFC president’s quite public and inflamed one – goes? Well, much like any other human being, Yamasaki is not necessarily a fan of getting called out. But, considering this is not his first rodeo, he doesn’t take it too personally.

“No one likes being criticized,” Yamasaki said. “Of course it gets to you. We like to get compliments. (But) it’s part of the job. Dana is a great businessman and promoter of the event, and he has the right to express his opinions. Considering I’ve been there for 20 years, I’ve learned a lot with time.

“It’s part of it that fans believe that they’re high-level athletes, that they (think they) know all the rules and that they can do what they see onscreen. I know how to deal with it, and it’s part of the job.”

Referees have to make quick decisions based on their point of view. That leaves room for subjectivity and, consequently, human error. And as much as he’s learned to take criticism in stride, that doesn’t mean he’s immune to his own when he does, in fact, make mistakes.

“I like to re-watch and go back on controversial fights,” Yamasaki said. “I get very upset, because I’m an athlete and fighter (Yamasaki is a jiu-jitsu black belt) before I’m a referee. I know exactly what they’re going through, and like I said, I’m always learning and evolving.

“We can’t be hypocrites. We need to correct things so we can move forward. People who think they know it all will get stuck and become outdated. Life goes by so fast. If we don’t keep up, we’ll fall behind.”

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 112, check out the UFC Events section of the site.