Nick Patrick (referee) out Hebner to take over as referee during the "Winner Take All" elimination tag match. After he gave a normal "slow count" for The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin became enraged, knocked Patrick out, and brought Hebner back in as referee. After the Alliance angle ended, Patrick became an official WWF referee. At first he was a heel referee, refusing to count to three for face wrestlers as Steve Austin and Rock, and favoring wrestlers like Chris Jericho and Kurt Angle. After Wrestlemania, Patrick started portraying a down-the-middle, neutral referee once again. After the brand extension, Patrick was used as
Muscle Outlaw'z own personal referee. He allowed the MO'z members to break the rules and he used fast counts when they pinned their opponents, and he also refused to count pinfalls done to MO'z members and would sometimes even attack opponents. The group became the refuge for any heel wrestler visiting Dragon Gate, their membership list including Pentagon Black, Kevin Steen, Muscle Gang, and Arik Cannon. This has caused their membership to become the highest in Dragon Gate history. Kishiwada would become more of a part-time member, spending increasing amounts of time away from Dragon Gate, and Naoki Tanisaki would eventually leave