Boxing gloves are cushioned gloves that fighters wear on their hands during boxing matches and practices. Unlike "fist-load weapons" (such as the ancient cestus) which were designed as a lethal weapon, modern boxing gloves are non-lethal, designed to protect both the opponent's head and the fighter's hand during a bout. Sparring and other forms of boxing training have their own specialized gloves.
Ancient Middle-Eastern and Egyptian depictions of boxing c. 2000 BC showed contests where fighters had a band supporting the wrist. Early depictions of gloves in boxing date back to Minoan Crete c. 1500 BC. [1] [2] The use of hand protection in fighting contests undertaken for sport has been known since Ancient Greece. However, the gloves were very different from those of modern boxing, as was the sport itself. [3] In Ancient Greece, it was common practice to tie strips of leather round the hands for protection. In Roman times, this developed into the gladiatorial cestus, with metal added to the gloves to inflict greater damage. [4] The oldest surviving example of boxing gloves date to around AD 120, coming in the form of two non-matching leather bands that were recovered from excavations at the Roman fort of Vindolanda. [5] The brutality of the sport caused the boxing to be banned in AD 393. [6] [ better source needed ]
Boxing experienced a revival in Britain around the 17th century. Many bouts were fought with bare knuckles and with no standard rules until Jack Broughton introduced boxing rules known as Broughton's Law in the 18th century, where the gloves were used for practice purposes only. [6] [7] However, many boxers still chose to fight with bare knuckles until 1867 when gloves were mandated by the Marquess of Queensberry Rules. [8]
Modern boxing gloves started showing up towards the end of the 1890s. Over one hundred years of engineering and testing by some of the biggest boxing manufacturers and sport names have helped create safe, durable equipment. [9] Modern boxing gloves include mesh palm, velcro, leather-based stitching, suspension cushioning and new padding for the boxer. The International Boxing Association approves new designs of gloves according to rules around weight and the amount of leather, padding and support allowed. [10]
Boxing gloves usually come with either lace-ups or velcro. [11] In velcro gloves, the velcro acts as a second handwrap that adds more stability to the wrist. [12] Lace-up gloves provide a more snug and secure fit, but unlike velcro gloves, require assistance from another person to lace, and are usually wrapped with tape before the match. [13] Lace-up gloves can be converted to velcro gloves using a hook and loop converter. [11]
Three types of padding commonly used in boxing gloves are horsehair padding, foam padding or a mix of both. [14] Foam padding gloves use latex and PVC foam with shock absorber. Horsehair gloves last longer than foam padding gloves and are environmentally friendly, but are less protective. [15]
In amateur boxing matches, glove color is restricted to red or blue, often with a white "scoring area" at the knuckles to help judges see and record points from a proper punch. [16]
Boxing gloves are worn over hand wraps, which help stabilize the fist area against injuries such as the eponymous boxer's fracture of the fifth metacarpal. [17] The hand wrap is usually made from cotton and is available in either 120 inches (3,000 mm) or 170 inches (4,300 mm). [18]
| Type [19] | Images | Description | Available size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bag gloves |  | A cushioned glove to protect the athlete's hands against heavy strikes on punching bags; these are the gloves not recommended by trainers for any boxing training, especially for non-sparrers. [18] | 8 oz 10 oz 12 oz [20] 14 oz 16 oz [19] |
| Bag mitts | Mitts are used to add slight protection to the athlete's hands while striking punching bags while simultaneously strengthening the athlete's hands and allowing for the practice of proper, closed-fist punching technique. | 2oz | |
| Sparring gloves |  | Gloves designed to protect both athletes during practice bouts. [21] Usually gloves 2 to 4 oz heavier than competition gloves are selected to spar, to avoid unnecessary injuries. However, in some unique cases of exceptionally strong punching power, gloves of around 20 oz could be utilized. Sonny Liston had 22 oz custom-made Everlast gloves, though they barely saved his sparring partners from being knocked out daily. Mike Tyson, while being an amateur, had 18 oz sparring gloves, which also barely protected his sparring partners from his heavy punches. [22] | 4 oz [23] 6 oz 10 oz [24] 12 oz [20] 14 oz 16 oz 18 oz 20 oz [21] [25] |
| Competition gloves |  | Gloves designed to protect both athletes during competitions, built according to official regulations. Generally less padded than other glove types. [21] Have white-painted scoring area at the knuckles. | 8 oz 10 oz 12 oz [19] |
| Lace Up gloves |  | Gloves typically used by professionals in training and competition | 8 oz 10 oz 12 oz 14 oz 16 oz |
The impact of gloves on the injuries caused during a fight is a controversial issue. Hitting to the head was less common in the bare-knuckle era because of the risk of hurting the boxer's hand. Gloves reduce the number of cuts caused, but a report by the British Medical Association concluded that gloves do not reduce brain injuries and may even increase them, because the main cause of injury is acceleration and deceleration of the head, and fighters wearing gloves are able to punch harder to the head. Gloves may reduce the number of eye injuries, especially if they are thumbless, but retinal tears and detached retinas still occur to boxers wearing modern gloves. [26] [27]
Data for the number of fights and deaths from the bare-knuckle era is incomplete, and there were many differences in rules and medical care. Bare-knuckle boxing matches were usually fought until one fighter could not continue, with bouts sometimes lasting hours, and a few fighters dying after they were carried to their mark to restart the fight when they would otherwise have been unable to continue. (The London Prize Ring Rules later specifically stated that a fighter must "walk to his own side of the scratch unaided" (emphasis added) or lose the fight.) Bare-knuckle rules also allowed grappling and throws, and some deaths were caused by a fighter hitting their head on a stone or rail. [28] [29]
 |
Weighted training gloves are sometimes used in order to add resistance to punching exercises. Such gloves standardly range between one and three kg. As their usage over time typically increases the boxer's strength in that range of movement, they are used to increase the speed and power of a punch; in order to achieve this, their usage may be alternated with normal unweighted punching practice. Care is taken that the muscular adaption for the weight does not impair the normal punching action. Light dumbbells are sometimes used on a similar basis to weighted gloves.
On 16 June 1983 at Madison Square Garden, New York City, Luis Resto unexpectedly beat the previously undefeated Billy Collins Jr. An investigation found Resto's gloves had been illegally modified, with padding removed by his trainer, Panama Lewis. As sport journalist Oliver Irish summarized, "Lewis served two years of a six-year prison sentence for assault, conspiracy, tampering with a sports contest and criminal possession of a deadly weapon (Resto's fists)". [9]
Open-fingered and open palm MMA gloves or grappling gloves, which are frequently used in mixed martial arts bouts, are not boxing gloves. [30] Similar to the wrist-supporting, closed-thumb, broken-knuckle kempo gloves popularized by Bruce Lee's 1973 movie Enter the Dragon , they provide some padding to the person wearing the glove, but leave the fingers and the palm area open and available for intricate wrestling and grappling maneuvers such as clinch fighting, which are illegal in the sport of modern boxing. [31]
| British Boxing Board of Control [32] | British and Irish Boxing Authority [33] |
|---|---|
| Adidas (Adistar, Hybrid400, Speed combo, BC09) | RDX Sports |
| BBE | Box Fit UK |
| Ben Lee | 3x Sports Ltd |
| Carbon Claw (Sondaica, Corbetti) | |
| Cleto Reyes | |
| Di Nardo (Equumi I, Equum II, Tutela) | |
| Everlast (Regular, Elite, Pro-Tec, Powerlock, MX Pro 2.0, 1910) | |
| Fighters Block | |
| Fly (Regular, Orthopaedic, Mexican & Classic) | |
| Geezers (Geezers Boxing) | |
| Grants | |
| True Mind Creative | |
| Hatton Pro Fight Glove | |
| Hayabusa | |
| Leon | |
| Loaded | |
| Lonsdale | |
| LRG | |
| No Boxing No Life | |
| Paffin | |
| Phenom ("XDF & RSF) | |
| Queensberry | |
| RDX (Apex -A2, Apex -A3, Cortex -C2, Cortex-C3) | |
| Reebok | |
| Ringcraft / Red Diamond | |
| Ringside (Legacy & Revolution) | |
| Rival | |
| Title | |
| Sting (Evolution) | |
| Tuf-Wear | |
| Venum ("Shield", "Giant 2.0", "CoCo" and "Hammer") | |
| VIP | |
| Webb | |
| Winning |
Boxing is a combat sport and a martial art in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined amount of time in a boxing ring.
Kickboxing is a full-contact combat sport and a form of boxing based on punching and kicking. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouth guards, shorts, and bare feet to favor the use of kicks. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, general fitness, or for competition. Some styles of kickboxing include: Full contact karate, Muay Thai, Japanese kickboxing, Lethwei, Sanda, and Savate.
Muay Thai, sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking, sweeps, and various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "Art of eight limbs", as it is characterised by the combined use of fists, elbows, knees and shins. Muay Thai became widespread internationally in the late 20th to 21st century, when Westernised practitioners from Thailand began competing in kickboxing and mixed-rules matches as well as matches under Muay Thai rules around the world. The professional league is governed by The Professional Boxing Association of Thailand (P.A.T.), sanctioned by The Sports Authority of Thailand (S.A.T.).
Boxing training is the training method that boxers use in order to get more fit for their sport.
Carlos "Panama" Lewis was an American boxing trainer. He was convicted of tampering with the gloves of Luis Resto for his fight against Billy Collins Jr. in 1983, which subsequently led to the end of Collins' boxing career. Collins suffered from depression and possibly committed suicide following the assault.
The Marquess of Queensberry Rules, also known as Queensbury Rules, are a code of generally accepted rules in the sport of boxing. Drafted in London in 1865 and published in 1867, they were named so as the 9th Marquess of Queensberry publicly endorsed the code, although they were written by a Welsh sportsman named John Graham Chambers from Llanelli, Carmarthenshire. The code of rules on which modern boxing is based, the Queensberry rules were the first to mandate the use of gloves in boxing.
Full contact karate is any format of karate where competitors spar full-contact and allow a knockout as winning criterion.
Bare-knuckle boxing is a full-contact combat sport based on punching without any form of padding on the hands. The sport as it is known today originated in 17th-century England and differs from street fighting as it follows an accepted set of rules.
John Lawrence Sullivan, known simply as John L. among his admirers, and dubbed the "Boston Strong Boy" by the press, was an American boxer. He is recognized as the first heavyweight champion of gloved boxing, de facto reigning from February 7, 1882, to September 7, 1892. He is also generally recognized as the last heavyweight champion of bare-knuckle boxing under the London Prize Ring Rules, being a cultural icon of the late 19th century America, arguably the first boxing superstar and one of the world's highest-paid athletes of his era. Newspapers' coverage of his career, with the latest accounts of his championship fights often appearing in the headlines, and as cover stories, gave birth to sports journalism in the United States and set the pattern internationally for covering boxing events in media, and photodocumenting the prizefights.
Lethwei or Burmese boxing is a full contact combat sport from Myanmar that uses stand-up striking including headbutts. Lethwei is considered to be one of the most brutal martial arts in the world, as the sport is practiced bareknuckle with only tape and gauze while fighters are allowed to strike with their fists, elbows, knees, and feet, and the use of headbutts is also permitted. Disallowed in most combat sports, headbutts are important weapons in a Lethwei fighter's arsenal, giving Lethwei its name of the "Art of nine limbs". This, combined with its bareknuckle nature, gave Lethwei a reputation for being one of the bloodiest and most violent martial arts. Although popular throughout modern Myanmar, Lethwei has been primarily and historically associated with the Karen people of the Kayin State; vast majority of competitive Lethwei fighters are ethnolinguistically of Karen descent.
Joseph Bartlett Choynski was an American boxer who fought professionally from 1888 to 1904.
A hand wrap or wrist wrap is a strip of cloth used by boxers to protect the hand and wrist against injuries induced by punching. It is wrapped securely around the wrist, the palm, and the base of the thumb, where it serves to both maintain the alignment of the joints, and to compress and lend strength to the soft tissues of the hand during the impact of a punch.
Ancient Greek boxing dates back to at least the 8th century BC, and was practiced in a variety of social contexts in different Greek city-states. Most extant sources about ancient Greek boxing are fragmentary or legendary, making it difficult to reconstruct the rules, customs and history surrounding this activity in great detail. Still, it is clear that gloved boxing bouts were a significant part of ancient Greek athletic culture throughout the early classical period.
William Ray Collins Jr. was an American professional boxer who competed from 1981 to 1983. He was undefeated before his career was cut short after his final fight when he sustained serious injuries against Luis Resto in their ten-round bout. Aided by his trainer Panama Lewis, Resto used illegal, tampered gloves with an ounce of the gloves' cushioning removed, along with hand wraps which had been soaked in plaster of Paris.
Luis Resto is a former Puerto Rican boxer from The Bronx, New York, who was convicted of assault and conspiracy for his part in a cheating scandal.
MMA gloves or grappling gloves are small, open-fingered gloves optionally used in mixed martial arts bouts. They usually have around 4–6 oz (110–170 g) of padding and are designed to provide some protection to the person wearing the glove, but leave the fingers available for grappling maneuvers such as clinch fighting and submissions.
The Bare Knuckle Boxing Hall of Fame is a museum and hall of fame in Belfast, New York, dedicated to the sport of bare-knuckle boxing. It is housed in barns that were once owned by the Greco-Roman wrestling champion and physical culture pioneer William Muldoon. The heavyweight boxing champion John L. Sullivan, who fought in both bare-knuckled and gloved boxing contests, trained in these barns under Muldoon's guidance for his championship bout against Jake Kilrain in 1889. The barns were originally across Main Street from their current location, on the grounds of the Belfast Catholic Church. They were bought, moved, and restored by Scott Burt when the church became no longer interested in maintaining them. Burt opened the Hall of Fame in 2009, when it had its first induction class.
Chivarreto boxing, also known as Boxeo a puño limpio, is a type of boxing that is practiced in the Chivarreto villa in San Francisco El Alto, Totonicapan, Guatemala. It is a popular activity in town and there is an annual tournament, held during Semana Santa every year, with fights held on Good Friday. The tournaments began as a punishment to criminals who'd then have to fight it out amongst themselves; since 1900, it developed into an open contest in which anyone can participate, and winners receive trophies.
Cassius Clay fought Argentine Alex Miteff in a ten-round boxing match in Louisville on October 7, 1961. Clay won the fight through a technical knockout when the referee stopped the fight in the sixth round. Miteff and Clay would feature in the 1962 film Requiem for a Heavyweight.
Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) is an American bare-knuckle boxing promotion based in Philadelphia. BKFC is the first promotion to hold an official state-sanctioned and commissioned bare-knuckle boxing event in the United States since 1889. Its first event was held in 2018, with 49 "numbered" events held as of August 2023.
Media related to Boxing gloves at Wikimedia Commons
