Veteran referee Herb Dean said he’s had a chat with UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier, and everything appears to be smoothed over.

In March Cormier (17-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) complained to the Nevada State Athletic Commission that Dean should’ve broken up clinches more often in his first bout with Jon Jones (22-1 MMA, 16-1 UFC) at UFC 182, and the referee shouldn’t be assigned to oversee a rematch at UFC 197.

The NSAC nevertheless assigned Dean the fight, though champ Cormier’s concerns were rendered moot when he was forced to withdraw from the April pay-per-view event due to injury. Dean went on to oversee an interim title bout that saw Jones win the belt against short-notice replacement Ovince Saint Preux ((19-8 MMA, 7-3 UFC).

Cormier eventually reached out directly to Dean about the issue, and the veteran referee was reassured by the champ that there won’t be any issues moving forward.

“I’m not sure about understanding that because I have talked to him since then; he reached out to me to talk to me, and he said, ‘I have full confidence in you,’” Dean told MMAjunkie Radio. “I said, well, let me know if any time you have a problem with anything I’ve done.

“Besides, you’re a champion for a reason and you understand a lot about this sport, so any of your input in the way our jobs should be done, I want to hear it. Of course, I’m going to make the decision on how to do my job.”

Dean is no stranger to defending his decisions inside the cage since he’s one of the most visible referees in the sport. He’s used to a certain amount of feedback on his performances, both positive and negative, and thinks it’s part of the process in overseeing a sport with such a devoted fan base. What he takes issue with, however, is the immediate blame often placed on officials.

In Cormier’s case, there was frustration at extended periods of clinching within the cage, which ultimately contributed to a decision loss to then-undisputed champ Jones in the heated grudge match. Although Dean is committed to making the best possible decisions during the action, he can empathize with Cormier’s opinion, especially given the demands on the current champ.

“I think that, man, this sport is a groundbreaking thing,” he said. “These guys have so many responsibilities, like Cormier. He’s a team member, he’s a champion, and he’s a commentator. I think these commentators, every time they have to say something that’s going to grab people’s attention, and I think the UFC and the people around the UFC do a really good job of not going after the officiating, even though it comes up a lot.

“I’ve seen other organizations that do it more, and I think that’s low-hanging fruit. Because any time you can pick out the official, there’s 50 percent of the people who are going to agree with you. So if you say something inflammatory, you’re going to get a rise out of a lot of people. Managing all those responsibilities is pretty difficult.”

No doubt, Dean’s name will come up for Cormier and Jones’ title-unification headliner at UFC 200, which takes place July 9 at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena. It’s too early to say whether he’ll get the assignment; the NSAC hasn’t met to determine officials for the blockbuster pay-per-view card.

But from the sound of it, there won’t be any objections coming from Cormier this time around.

For more on UFC 200, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.

MMAjunkie Radio broadcasts Monday-Friday at 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT) live from Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino’s Race & Sports Book. The show, available on SiriusXM Ch. 93, is hosted by “Gorgeous” George Garcia and producer Brian “Goze” Garcia. For more information or to download past episodes, go to www.mmajunkie.com/radio.