People ask me all the time what boxing gear, gloves and wraps, they should get. My first question is, “How long do you intend to keep boxing?” That question is more about gloves than wraps, because wraps can last you a really, really long time. I just tell you not to buy from a brand name store like Dick’s, Target or Walmart. Support your local gym and buy from me, you will get what you need.
If you want new gloves, that’s a whole different story, but still don’t buy from one of those large retailers. If you can afford them (last time I checked on Ebay, they were about $600), buy a pair of Grant 10oz (lace up) pro fight gloves. You have seen them hanging on my wall. Mine look great on the outside but I have beat the last little bit of foam out of them. I cherish them because they were the gloves I trained in for most of my pro fights. I will never get rid of them.
You will see many, many top level pro’s sparring in Winning Japan. That’s what they use it for, sparring. I could never afford it, so if you are ready to buy Winning, Don’t! You don’t need that expensive of gear. Win a few pro fights and maybe you can get some.
I owned a pair of 10oz Winning gloves for my bag gloves after I retired my Grants. I personally did not like them. They didn’t fit right after wearing another pair for so long. I didn’t like the way the foam fit on my knuckles and they way they lacked support on the wrist. Again they are incredibly expensive, so I don’t recommend them.
I will tell you that I am a huge fan of the American company Fighting Sports USA (yes, same logo as Winning but with some investigation I have found that they are not owned by Winning). They are the Americanized version of Winning, and much easier on the wallet. I currently wear a pair of their 10oz lace up gloves and I love them. Fighting makes plenty of different types of gloves for you to choose from. They have 10, 12 and 16oz for you to choose from in different colors. We have a few members in the gym with them on, so if you want to try them on to see how they feel, just ask around. They are made from real leather with double stitching so you are going to have a very hard time trying to break them down and blow foam out of them. There are many different companies with many different styles and designs, it all depends on what fits and what was a long shelf life.
When it comes to handwraps, you need one style. Mexican style wraps 180in. They are semi-elastic and long enough to support your entire hand. Again, I urge you stay away from big name retailers. They sell the short wraps with no elastic. It’s like trying to wrap your hand with a piece of canvas. If you come into the gym with those on, I will tell you to take them back. I seriously throw those out if I find them. I won’t even use them as loaner wraps.
