UNION fighting Boxing Gloves Review

UNION fighting Muay Thai Boxing Gloves (16oz) Review

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Brand

Union fighting is the trademark brand of TheGymGeek. The brand state that their equipment is designed in Northern Thailand under the scrutiny of Muay Thai and boxing champions – designed by engineers from some of the leading glove companies.

About the gloves

UNION Fighting are a relatively unknown brand, and we have to admit we were only made aware of them by a commenter on our Youtube channel. After seeing how good value they were, we knew we’d have to try them out.

The UNION fighting Boxing Gloves come in two styles, one with a boxing style cuff, and the other with a Muay Thai style cuff. We’ve reviewed the version with the Muay Thai cuff. They’re available in all of the standard sizes from 10oz to 16oz

We’ve reviewed the 16oz version, in order to see how it fares in all situations. Check out our guide on choosing the right glove size if you’re not sure what size you need.

Visuals

Visually these gloves are quite simple. These are available in either black or white. Personally I opted for white, because I think it looks a little cleaner. In terms of graphics, the main elements are the ‘UNION Fighting’ logo patch on the wrist, and a symbol on the back of the hand which seems to represent a knot – a nice representation of a union. Underneath that we have the glove weight printed on the back of the hand. It’s a slightly unusual choice, but doesn’t really hurt the design at all.

Materials/Craftsmanship

These gloves are seriously cheap, so I wasn’t really expecting much in terms of quality. After getting these however, I’m genuinely surprised. These are not top tier gloves by any means, but they’re far better than any other gloves in the same price range, such as the Everlast Pro Style Training Gloves.

The majority of the glove seems to be a synthetic leather. There’s a slight rubbery feel, but it’s pretty sturdy and pulled nice and tightly over the padding, so it should last well over time. As far as synthetic leathers go, this isn’t too bad. The inner section on the back of the wrist is leather, which is fairly common for Muay Thai style gloves.

The inner lining on these gloves is definitely one of my favourite parts though. When you put your hand inside the glove you notice that the lining is particularly soft and smooth. It’s the sort of lining that you usually only see on far more expensive ‘premium’ gloves, so it’s inclusion here is pretty cool. With this sort of lining you do need to make sure you air your gloves out well after use, but you should be doing that anyway.

In terms of shape, the padding is distributed so that it’s balanced equally across the entire hand. It’s definitely more of a Muay Thai style of padding which gives more protection on the back of the hand for blocking kicks. It does make the shape of the glove look a little ‘flat’ however.

The stitching could be a little better, but it’s not terrible. I’ve spotted a few small loose threads sticking out, and there a couple of lines which aren’t perfectly straight. Everything is reinforced where we would expect. Although it’s not perfectly neat, they should still hold together for a long time.

Comfort/use

Putting these gloves on is pretty easy. There’s plenty of space inside, and the velcro is really easy to do up. It’s not the strongest velcro in the world, but there’s a long connecting section, so it holds well when you’re training.

I did find the padding a little stiff at first, due to the way it bends over the knuckles. This is not so much an issue, but more something to be aware of. You can break these in easily by using them for a few lighter sessions first or following our other tips for breaking in boxing gloves.

Once the padding is broken in, it’s time to get training. I’d say these gloves were somewhere between a medium and firm padding density. The impact of the strike is mostly absorbed, but you also get a good amount of ‘feedback’, so you can really feel when a punch lands well.

Cost

I mentioned that these gloves are good value, and I really mean it. At the time of writing, the gloves are £28, temporarily reduced down to £25.20. What makes this an even better purchase is that you can buy it as a full sparring set. This set includes these gloves, headgear, shin guards and hand wraps for £60. If you bought these separately they would cost £81.99, which means more than a 25% discount when buying as a set.

You’ll want to check out our reviews of the rest of the training kit if you’re looking to buy the whole set.

If you’re trying to pick up some new boxing gloves for as cheap as possible, or if you’re a beginner just starting out, then the UNION fighting Muay Thai Boxing Gloves would be a solid shout. I’m personally willing to say these are hands down better than any similarly priced gloves from Everlast or Lonsdale.

Looking to buy these?

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