MMA gloves are an essential piece of protection wear for both training and competing. For MMA, they are a must for competition, sparring and bag and pad work.
Recently muay thai compeition on the ONE Championship has been fought with smaller MMA gloves. The smaller MMA gloves used for muay thai opens up the fight for more KO punches and elbows.
The smaller MMA gloves mean a smaller guard when defending and increased opportunities to sneak elbows through the extra space MMA gloves allow.
Many agree that muay thai fights with MMA gloves are more exciting to watch though some also prefer the traditional larger boxing gloves.
9 Best MMA Gloves – My Top Recommendations
Whether you are training or competing and are looking for a quality pair of mma gloves – below are my top recommendations for MMA gloves.
Hayabusa T3 MMA Gloves
Ideal for sparring, grappling and striking.
This glove weighs approximately 113 grams or 4oz.
The padding is pre curved which assists to reduce hand fatigue whilst sparring. This type of glove is a Velcro as it wraps around the glove and pulls the two halves together.
Hayabusa gloves cost around $63-$90 and are one of the most expensive ones.
These gloves come in 6 variety of colors to choose from. It also includes anti-microbial technology and multidirectional dual-X closure.
Venum Challenger MMA Gloves
VENUM as always offers quality at an affordable price, perfect for training and inside the octagon as well.
Venum challenger weighs 4 oz and it has a layered foam and shock absorption.
This glove is also a Velcro which straps the gloves around for a tight grip, this glove cost around 34-60 euros.
These quality gloves featured layered foam which gives a greater range of protection and this is made in Thailand with superior quality.
RDX MMA Gloves
These gloves are integrated with shock absorbent foam over the knuckle and wrist area.
RDX gloves have extra thick triple layered gel tech padding and weigh around 4-6oz.
This is also a Velcro glove using the straps and they cost around $30-$70.
These RDX gloves offer a lot of thickness over the knuckle and wrist and is composed of full grain cowhide leather.
It also moisture -wicking synthetic fabric and considered to be a at very low price point.
Everlast MMA Gloves
This type of glove gives a premium synthetic leather with great glove construction that enables a long-lasting durability.
Everlast gloves weigh between 4-6oz and its padding mechanism keeps the hands cool and dry.
It provides a full wrist wrap strap to ensure greater wrist support and more customized fit and they cost around 30 to 60 dollars.
These gloves feature ever-dry technology helps to keep our hands cool and dry enabling more enhanced grappling and the leather construction gives a longer lasting durability and functionality.
Combat Sports MMA Gloves
This type of glove is an open palm design which is best for grappling and allows full gripping capabilities.
This is highly recommended for younger generation kids however it meets all the regulations MMA competitions.
Combat sports glove weigh about 5 ounce and have ¾ padding which increases safety of hands and the opponents.
It is also a Velcro strapping and they are inexpensive costing about 20-50 dollars. This pair of gloves are great for beginners and even kids.
TITLE MMA Gloves
TITLE Boxing expanded into Mixed Martial Arts and quickly became the go-to brand for many of today’s top combat sports athletes. TITLE MMA continues to make its mark in kickboxing, cage fighting and all of the mixed martial arts.
The TITLE Amateur competition gloves are made in India and includesDurable engineered leather and wrap around wrist strap with hook-and-loop closure.
This helps in keeping the gloves secure when training.
Overall TITLE is a trusted name that offers quality MMA gloves at a very reasonable price.
BAD BOY Pro SERIES 3.0 MAULER MMA GLOVES
These gloves are used endorsed by UFC #4 ranked light heavyweight fighter Alexander Gustaffsan.
The BAD BOY Poo series gloves are designed for competition and feature high density and multi0layered EVA foam for excellent protection with maximum power striking.
They come in 4oz and include moisture wicking lining to keep them cool.
Sanabul New Item Battle Forged MMA Grappling Gloves 4 oz
Sanabul is a long establisihed and trusted name in martial arts fight gear.
The battle forged Mixed Martial Arts gloves are no exception and for their durability and quality and visual appeal, these gloves are a top recommendation.
They come in 4oz size and use SBL engineered leather, hand-shaped foam, and other modifications to provide added comfort and durability.
That being said these gloves, as implied in the name does seem to have a ‘grappling’ focus.
These gloves probably would not be used in competition. The Hook and Loop Closure System is ideal for training as they are easy to take off and put on between rounds of training.
