Thoughts on the new UFC gloves after finally trying them on

During the madness that was UFC 300, the UFC announced the launch of their new gloves. At the time, I didn't have the time to fully dedicate to writing about them due to the magnitude of the historic card but now that it's in the rearview mirror, let's dive right in.

First, I've seen multiple comments on my TikTok video and it seems people are very confused about the size of the gloves. When the presentation was happening the UFC handed out several gloves to pass around the room and try on. I just so happened to get the only 4X in the whole lot so when you see the fit, it's obviously too big. Try not to focus too much on that.

Second, many fans are under the misconception that these gloves were redesigned for the purpose of preventing eye pokes, and that's not the case. They were redesigned for the overall look, comfort, and safety of the fighters. They were made to prevent fewer hand breaks. They do hope the new design will prevent eye pokes but that wasn't the point (pun intended) of the new glove.

The new UFC gloves will debut at UFC 302

Here's a few quick fact that many fans seem to have missed from the presentation.

• The gloves have been in the works for about five years
• The gloves were tested in real fights over 10 weeks of DWCS events
• All feedback was positive and eye pokes were down from the previous season

The gloves felt incredible. The leather was soft and the seams are on the inside, rather than outside to help prevent cuts. It was not hard to make a fist and the gloves did not force my hands open like many fans thought they did.

There are different colors for different levels of UFC activity. DWCS fighters will have blue gloves, Road to the UFC will have red, TUF will have black with "TUF" branding and UFC fights will have black with "UFC" branding. Championship fights will be gold.

Some fans also thought the gloves were being used immediately, which was not the case. The fighters will use these gloves starting at UFC 302 and have been given time to use them in training before the event.

I'm excited to hear from the fighters after the event to see what they think of the new design and to see if the fights change at all with them in use.