UFC Vegas 102 kicked off with a big piece of news that caught the attention of online fight fans.
Before Julia Avila retired after losing the first fight of the night, UFC commentator John Gooden announced news that will see MMA’s premier promotion make a major change that could impact the fighters.
From now on, all fighters will revert back to using the old UFC gloves on a permanent basis.
In April 2024, Dana White made a massive presentation of their new 3Eight and 5Eight gloves. They were said to help minimize eye pokes and cuts, but since debuting at UFC 302, they have proven controversial.
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Old UFC gloves return for good
Sean Strickland was highly critical of the new UFC gloves and Islam Makhachev voiced his concerns too.
Fans weren’t happy as there seemed to be fewer KOs after the fighters were forced to wear the new mitts.
Ahead of UFC 309, it was announced that Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic would be using the old gloves for their heavyweight title fight, as would everyone else competing on the stacked Madison Square Garden card.
“There were a lot of complaints,” White explained at a UFC 309 pre-fight press conference.
“We originally created these gloves to stop eye pokes and we had good intentions with them.
“They didn’t work out, people weren’t happy with them. So I actually made the decision.
“I called our chief operating officer, Lawrence [Epstein], and said ‘I’m switching the gloves, I want the old gloves back’.”
After Jones KO’d Mioic, White confirmed that the UFC will revert back to the old gloves permanently.
“Yeah, it’s a permanent move but the problem is that we don’t have enough of the old gloves, so until we can get them all done then yeah, that’s it,” he said.
UFC fans react to glove update
Fight fans were quick to share their thoughts about the UFC glove change on social media.
One fan said: “What a fiasco.” While another added: “You should all be thanking Jon Jones.”
“They never should’ve changed them to begin with,” a third X user insisted.
“That didn’t last long,” someone else pointed out.
“Smart move,” a fifth fan said.
“Trial & Error,” this fan added.