“Big” John McCarthy is reportedly retiring following Saturday’s “Ultimate Fighter” finale at the Palms Hotel in Las Vegas, according to Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports. He is scheduled to preside over the main event match-up of Clay Guida versus Roger Huerta.
He is expected to take a position as a mixed martial arts analyst at The Fight Network reported Iole.
McCarthy has been a staple of the Ultimate Fighting Championship since its second event on March 11, 1994. He is widely regarded as the leading authority in the world on MMA officiating. According to his website, BigJohnMcCarthy.com, he has officiated more than 500 bouts in his career.
He has been a driving force in the progression of officiating in the sport and in development of the rules commonly used today. McCarthy – along with Nelson Hamilton, Herb Dean and Cecil Peoples – is a trainer of other officials via a company called REFS (Ring Experienced Fight Specialists).
A black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Rorion Gracie, McCarthy last year opened Big John’s Ultimate Training Academy in Valencia, Calif. He is also a longtime self-defense and tactics instructor for the Los Angeles Police Department.
