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How to Buy Good Mixed Martial Arts Gloves

July 13, 2008

If you’re on the market for mixed martial arts gloves and don’t know what to look for, don’t feel bad. Unlike boxing gloves, MMA gloves are a relatively new product to hit the market, and were only popularized after the UFC craze made a big splash after The Ultimate Fighter Season 1 aired.

Once people started entering mixed martial arts schools in droves, and programs started cropping up all over, every martial arts supplier and equipment manufacturer started cranking out their version of mixed martial arts sparring gear.

The problem with this is that the MMA gloves you typically find in stores can be of a very poor quality. At the very least, they don’t last very long under hard training, and at the worst they can lead to injuries that can put a damper on your or your partners training.

So, let’s look at what fight and sparring gloves are supposed to do, then we can take a look at what you need to look for when choosing a good glove for training or competition.

And The Purpose of the Glove Is…

Mixed martial arts fight gloves are designed to protect the user first, and their opponent second. MMA sparring gloves have the same purpose, but generally have quite a bit more padding than fight gloves, to allow for sustained sparring with as little injury as possible.

Note that I say, “…as little injury as possible” – not “prevent injury”. MMA is a contact sport that involves hitting another person. You will get injured if you participate in hard sparring for any length of time. Get that through your head, and don’t expect the glove to protect you from every little scrape and bruise; they’re not designed for that.

What they are designed for is to:

  1. Protect your hands and wrists from injury when striking –
  2. Protect your sparring partner or opponent from sustaining serious cuts during a fight, or to reduce trauma during sparring.

So, there are two types of MMA gloves:

  • Fight gloves (which are lighter and thinner)
  • and Training/Sparring gloves (which come with a bit more padding over the knuckles).

So, a word of caution… if you spar with fight gloves, you’re more likely to get injured. That’s why you’ll want to have a pair of the lighter fight gloves to hit the pads and drill with (simulating fighting conditions) and a thicker pair of sparring gloves for – you guessed it – sparring.

And, if you plan to compete chances are good that the promoter (if they are sanctioned) will provide brand new fight gloves for the event. This is generally a requirement for safety (because, no matter how good a glove is, the padding wears out over time) and hygiene (because, the cleaner the glove, the less likely you are to get an infection from a scrape or cut).

Choosing Mixed Martial Arts Gloves

The first thing to consider when choosing which MMA gloves to buy is the material. If they’re made of “man-made” or “synthetic” or “simulated cowhide” materials, skip them. Ditto if they have any nylon straps that are integral to the construction.

These types of materials tend to leave nasty scrapes and cuts, even during light sparring. Also, unlike leather, synthetic materials tend to harden over time, losing their pliability and increasing the risk of injury.

So, only buy gloves that are made with 100% soft cowhide or calfskin leather. This is the same stuff that boxing gloves have been made from for years, and for good reason. It’s durable, and it tends to soften over time… the more you use it, the more comfortable it gets.

Another thing to look for is whether the wrist straps cover any Velcro on the glove. The strap should wrap completely over the Velcro and secure snugly while covering the Velcro material.

Why? Being a synthetic material, Velcro is abrasive, leading to additional scrapes and cuts. But, it’s also the most appropriate material for fastening the gloves, so you’ll have to live with it. A quick tip: look for gloves that have the soft side of the Velcro on the wrist, and the abrasive side (with the little nylon “hooks”) on the strap.

Manufacturers and Suppliers – Choose One That’s Knows What They’re Doing

There are a few manufacturers that have been making fight gloves for years that you can trust.

They are:

  1. Ringside
  2. Title
  3. Combat Sports (a division of Ringside)

All of the above brands of gloves and be found here at very reasonable prices:

Click Here to Buy Mixed Martial Arts Gloves

A relative newcomer but one that is also worth mentioning is RevGear. I use their equipment, and I’m especially fond of their MMA training glove. The leather is soft and supple, and even with the added padding you can still open and close your hand fairly easily.

I hope this article has helped you understand the difference between a cheap glove and a good mixed martial arts glove, as well as the reasons to avoid buying cheap equipment.

Now, go buy some good mixed martial arts gloves… your hands will thank you, and your training partners will likely appreciate it as well.

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About the Author: Mike Massie has been teaching the martial arts for over twenty years, and is a well-known and outspoken advocate on the topic of ethical martial arts business practices. He resides in Austin, Texas.

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Comments

One Response to “How to Buy Good Mixed Martial Arts Gloves”

  1. Kurt Schulenburg on July 14th, 2008 6:52 am

    We’ve also found that the RevGear gloves are pretty good. We’ve been using them for about a year and they’re holding up pretty well.

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