Tommi McCormick is a Muay Thai fighter based in England. He has over 20 years experience training Muay Thai and is currently training with Bodyflo gym in Sheffield. He fights at a variety of Promotions, including Yokkao’s UK Events, and Muay Thai Grand Prix where he’ll soon be fighting for the MTGP World Welterweight Title.
We spoke to Tommi to find out a little bit about his favourite gear and training advice.
Hi Tommi! What’s your favourite piece of fight gear?
I’d say at the minute my favourite gear are my 16oz Lonsdale Super Pro L-Core Lace Up Training Gloves.
What sort of training do you use them for?
I use them for pads, bagwork and sparing, they are a very good all-rounder.
How long have you been using them?
I’ve had these gloves for about 1 year now, and it’s the first time I’ve used a Lonsdale product.
What was the reason behind you getting them in the first place?
Really it was my sponsor (B.R. Property Maintenance LTD) that chose the gloves in the end. We were planning to get some Grant gloves ordered but the delivery time was just too long. My sponsor is big into boxing and had some recommendations for the Lonsdale gloves so he went and bought them for me.
What is it that you like most about the boxing gloves and why?
My must haves for gloves are;
- Must be Lace up (Velcro gloves should be banned in my opinion)
- Must have good wrist protection
- Must be good quality real leather and good quality foam/padding
The Lonsdale Super Pro L-Core Gloves are very good for me as they excel in all the areas I require. They are supported very well on the wrist, which is very reassuring when power punching. The padding is very good inside allowing you to be able to feel the shot but never putting your hands in danger. The leather is very nice too and has taken a lot of punishment without ever looking like breaking. In terms of styling they are not the best but they keep it simple with the black and white design.
With your fight gear, do you tend to stick to a few select brands, or do you like to use a nice variety?
I’ve been training for 23 years now so I’ve pretty much tried all brands when it comes to boxing gloves. As a Muay Thai fighter I’ve mainly stuck to the Thai brand of gloves, Twins, Fairtex, Windy, Yokkao ect. I think the only complaint I have with Thai brands is they lack consistency, I’ve had numerous pairs of 18 oz gloves, but all of them have been wildly different, for example one pair could have passed off for 14oz then the next pair could have been 20oz and this is from the same brand. I suppose the trade off for the Thai brands is that they cost significantly less than comparable boxing brands. So I suppose you have to take the rough with the smooth.
At the minute other than the Lonsdales, I own 10 oz Cleto Reyes safetec, 8oz Twins (both I use for speed work) and some 18oz Grants (backup pair) so I have a good selection.
Is there any other gear you couldn’t train without?
I’d say in terms of gloves you definitely need a good pair of hand wraps. I wrap my hands up really well every time I train so good hand wraps are essential. My hand wrap of choice are MTG pro 5m elasticated (See the Fight Quality review here). I find a lot of hand wraps nowadays are very much on the short side in terms of length. There’s nothing more frustrating than getting half way through the wrap and realising there’s nothing left… MTG pro’s are a great length allowing me to wrap a bumper and my full wrist and hand with easy and the fact they are elasticated makes give them great support but without ever feeling like they are squeezing your hand.
What pushes you to do your best during training?
It’s pretty simple… I want to win! I want to be the best I can be, I want to inspire people. You can’t do any of that if you don’t push yourself in training.
What’s your best training tip for aspiring fighters?
Master the basics and Practise, practise, practise as you will never stop learning.
Anything else you’d like to add?
I would like to say a quick thank you to my Sponsors B.R. Property Maintenance LTD and AESSEAL PLC for their continued support. Thanks to my team at Bodyflo in Sheffield, Nathan Cockcroft at standoutfitness and the Diane Modahl Sports Foundation… And finally thanks to Fight Quality for the opportunity to post.
If you want to hear more from Tommi you can connect with him over on his Twitter or Instagram accounts.