In this post you’ll discover what the best boxing gloves are for women, as voted by 28 professional female boxers.
Are there any difference between men's and women's boxing gloves?
The most popular brands of boxing gloves are making only one type of gloves – unisex gloves that are supposed to fit both men and women. Even though hand size between men and women can vary a lot, of course hand size can also differ greatly between people of the same gender. But some sources show that, on average, women’s palms are typically shorter and narrower than men’s [1]. Another study shows that the male thumb is a bit shorter compared to the female thumb [2].
So, it's not a surprise that many female fighters find boxing gloves too loose inside, because of the wide pocket that creates too much space and/or lack of sufficiently tight wrist support.
To find out exactly what boxing gloves typically fit the best for women, I've reached out to 28 of some of the best female boxers in the world to ask a simple question:
“If you could only pick 3 pairs of boxing gloves for your training, what brands and models would they be?”
So, without further ado, here are the list of brands the female boxers from this poll liked the most:
Favorite Boxing Glove brands (as voted by 28 female boxers!)
#1 Cleto Reyes – 17 votes
#2 Winning 11 – votes
#3 Grant – 9 votes
#4 Everlast – 7 votes
#5 Rival & Ringside tied up with 5 votes
#6 Title – 4 votes
#7 Lonsdale – 3 votes
#8 Adidas, Fighting Sports & Pro Mex tied with 2 votes
Some boxers also mentioned their favorite models. Here are a few that were mentioned more than once, with a link to our boxing reviews or to the manufacturer's site (if the model hasn't been reviewed yet).
- Ringside Pro Style IMF Tech gloves review
- Everlast Powerlock gloves review
- Rival RB-1 ultra bag gloves Amazon link
- Winning boxing gloves review
- Cleto Reyes Hybrid gloves review or Cleto Reyes Training gloves review
Read on to discover each boxer’s favorite 3 pairs of gloves! You can either skip to your favourite fighter using these quick links or grab a coffee, get comfortable and commence scrolling!
Mia St. John, Patricia Alcivar, Cathy Brown, Laila Ali, Sindy Amador, Maricela Cornejo, Heather Hardy, Sonya Lamonakis, Keisher McLeod-Wells, Maureen Shea, Kaliesha West, Layla McCarter, Melissa Hernandez, Shelito Vincent, Isra Girgrah, Diana Prazak, Eliza Olson, Aleksandra Lopes, Maria Lindberg, Ina Menzer, Susie Ramadan, Nicole Wesner, Maribel Zurita, Crystal Morales, Kali Reis, Marianne Marston, Sulem Urbina, Duda Yankovich
What are 3 Favorite Boxing Gloves for Women?
Answers are listed in random order:
Mia St. John – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Mia St. John is a Mexican-American professional boxer and former WBC Super Welterweight Champion of the World. Weight classes: Welterweight, light welterweight, lightweight, super featherweight, featherweight. Record: 47-14-2 (18 KOs).
Patricia Alcivar – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Patricia “Patty Boom Boom” Alcivar is a professional boxer and two-time champion of New York City. She was the first female boxer to be voted the athlete of the year by the United States Olympic Committee. Weight class: Super flyweight. Record: 7-3-0 (3 KOs).
“My top 3 picks for boxing gloves would be:
1. Ringside 16oz IMF Pro Style Tech for sparring
2. Title 14oz Platinum Sparring Gloves
3. Everlast Protex2 Training Gloves“
Cathy Brown – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Cathy “The Bitch” Brown is an ex-professional British boxer. she fought for nine titles and retired with the WIBF European Flyweight and the BBBofC English Bantamweight titles. Weight classes: Flyweight, bantamweight. Record: 13-8 (6 KOs).
“I use Ringside gloves as they fit my hands perfectly and they don't hurt my thumb and wrist where I broke it when I was fighting.
I have used Lonsdale in the past but their quality has gone downhill over the last few years so I don't use them anymore.
I haven't really got a top 3, as once I find a pair of gloves I love I won't use any others.”
Laila Ali – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Laila Ali is a retired undefeated American professional boxer holding WIBA, IWBF & IBA titles. She is also the daughter of retired heavyweight boxing legend Muhammad Ali. Weight classes: Super middleweight & light heavyweight. Record: 24-0 (21 KOs).
“Laila likes Grant and Reyes 14-16oz gloves for training.
– Assistant”
Sindy Amador – Twitter | Facebook
Sindy Amador is a professional boxer and current IFBA Champion of the world. Weight class: Light flyweight / Junior flyweight. Record: 12-1-1 (1 KO).
“I would say:
1 – Winning
2 – Cleto Reyes
3 – Twins, but I think they discontinued the Twins, I don't know why, they were very good and affordable. The last brand I tried was Sabas gloves, they sponsor me with boxing equipment. They are barely starting but I think they are pretty good.”
Maricela Cornejo – Twitter | Facebook
Maricela Cornejo is a professional fighter currently holding the WBC International Super Middleweight Champion title. Weight class: Super middleweight. Record: 4-1 (2 KOs).
Heather Hardy – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Heather “The Heat” Hardy is an undefeated professional boxer and UBF and WBC Super Bantamweight International Champion. Weight class: Super bantamweight. Record: 14-0 (3 KOs).
Sonya Lamonakis – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Sonya Lamonakis is a professional boxer, IBO World Champion and four-time NYC Golden Gloves Champion. Weight Class: Heavyweight. Record: 9-1-2 (1 KO).
Keisher McLeod-Wells – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Keisher “Fire” McLeod-Wells is currently the WIBA World Champion and a four-time Golden Gloves champion and two-time World Champion amateur boxer. Weight class: Flyweight. Record: 8-2 (1 KO).
“So I like Everlast, Lonsdale, & Winning. 8oz for hitting the bag & 14oz for sparring. I recommend the Lonsdale for women because female boxers become stronger than the average girl the same weight so we tend to hit the bag harder than what our wrist and fingers can support. The Lonsdale offers more padding around the fingers in my opinion protecting my hands. Now the Winnings are nice to have to “floss” and be “stylish”. They are pricey. It's like showing up to a fashion party with the hottest & latest Prada bag. Those are my favorite.”
Maureen Shea – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Maureen “The Real Million Dollar Baby” Shea is a professional boxer and the current IFBA Jr Featherweight World Champion, NABA Featherweight Champion and former WBC Featherweight Champion. Weight classes: Lightweight, super featherweight, featherweight, bantamweight. Record: 24-2 (12 KOs).
“As for gloves I would choose:
Winning, Reyes, Rival RB-1 ultra bag gloves.
I choose these three because I train in 12oz and spar in 14oz gloves. I have small hands and the pocket of the glove is made generally small.”
Kaliesha West – Facebook
Kaliesha West is a professional boxer and the former three-time WBO Female Bantamweight and IFBA super Bantamweight Boxing World Champion. Weight classes: Bantamweight, super bantamweight. Amateur record: 98-10 Professional record: 16-1-3 (4 KOs).
“Good question. I get asked this sometimes. My brand of choice (and I've tried many) is Lonsdale. Best glove brand I've ever had. I've been using it for over 4 years now. 2nd would be Winning, then Reyes.”
Layla McCarter – Twitter
Layla McCarter is a professional female boxer and current WBA Junior middleweight, former WBA Lightweight; GBU Junior Welterweight/Lightweight and IFBA Featherweight champion of the world. Record: 36-13-5 (8 KOs).
Melissa Hernandez – Twitter
Melissa “Huracán” Hernández is a professional boxer and current UBF Junior Welterweight, former WBC Featherweight, WIBA Featherweight; former WIBA Junior Lightweight / Junior Featherweight and GBU Lightweight Champion of the World. Record: 21-6-3 (6 KOs).
Shelito Vincent – Twitter | Facebook
Shelito “Shelito's Way” Vincent is an undefeated professional boxer and UBF and IBA Super Bantam Champion of the World. Weight class: Featherweight. Record: 15-0 (1 KO).
Isra Girgrah – Twitter
Isra Girgrah is a retired professional boxer and former IFBA/IWBF/WIBF Junior Lightweight and IBF/UBA Lightweight Champion of the World. Record: 28-3-2 (11 KOs).
Diana Prazak – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Diana Prazak is a professional boxer and WBAN Junior Lightweight, WBC Junior Lightweight and WIBA Junior Lightweight Champion of the World. She is also the first Australian fighter to ever become the pound for pound number one. Record: 13-3-0 (9 KOs).
“Winning
Everlast
Reyes”
Eliza Olson – Twitter | Facebook
Eliza Olson is retired professional boxer and former IBA Lightweight and former WBC Lightweight champion of the world. Record: 10-5-3 (2 KOs).
“TITLE Classics with lace up, they are nice and snug on the hand. Cleto Reyes a bit more expensive and Ringside gloves.”
Aleksandra Lopes – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Aleksandra Magdziak Lopes is a professional boxer currently ranking in the top 7 in the welterweight and light-middle weight divisions by various boxing organizations. Record: 13-3-2 (1 KOs). Next fight: October 30th. 2015.
“If it helps at all, I am currently using Title Platinum Primetime gloves for bag and pads. I typically order Title Boxing gloves for bag/pad work.
I'm using 16oz Pro Mex Professional Elastic Training Gloves for sparring.
I am really happy with both, if I needed to replace them down the road, I would probably go with the same brand and model.
Before purchasing Pro Mex I used Fighting Sports Tri-tech gloves for sparring and really liked them as well.”
Maria Lindberg – Website | Facebook
Maria Lindberg is a Swedish professional boxer and a WIBF/WIBA/GBU Junior Middleweight champion of the world. Record: 10-1-2 (4 KOs).
“My 3 gloves would be:
1) Winning Professional Boxing gloves
2) Adidas Adistar
3) Everlast Powerlock Pro Fight Boxing Gloves“
Ina Menzer – Website | Facebook
Ina Menzer is an ex-professional German boxer and former champion of WBC / WBO / WIBF / WIBA / WBF in the featherweight division. Record: 31-1-0 (11 KOs).
“I always boxed with Paffen Sport. For me these are the best boxing gloves. My favorites were Pro Classic 8/10 oz.”
Susie Ramadan – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Susie “Q” Ramadan is a professional boxer and Australia's first female to capture both the International Boxing Federation (IBF) Bantamweight World title & WBC World Bantamweight title. Record: 23-2-0 (8 KOs).
“My answer to the question is Sting Sports. I am proud sponsor of the company and have been for many years. I train and fight in Sting gloves and they have been my winning gloves not because I am sponsored with them but I have had the experience of using their wide range of gloves and equipment. My favorite is the Viper Pro Gloves.”
Nicole Wesner – Website | Facebook
Nicole Wesner is a professional Austrian boxer and WIBF, WBF & GBU World Champion. Weight class: Lightweight. Record: 11-0-0 (5 KOs).
“Adidas, Cleto Reyes and Grant.”
Maribel Zurita – Twitter
Maribel “Little Thunder” Zurita is the professional boxer and current WIBA Light Flyweight World Champion and former IFBA Flyweight World Champion. Record: 10-8-2.
Crystal Morales – Facebook
Crystal Morales is a professional boxer and current IFBA Champion of the World. Weight class: Lightweight. Record: 9-10-1 (1 KO).
“I would have to say I love Reyes gloves #1 pick for sure. Then #2 – Everlast. #3 would be Grant.
My #1 Cleto Reyes is because I love the model, it feels so much better and you can actually close your whole fist together.”
Kali Reis – Twitter | Facebook
Kali “K.O.” Reis is a professional boxer and is the first professional Native American boxer to become IBA Middleweight World Champion. Record: 7-4-1 (3 KOs).
“They would have to be Grant, Reyes and Winnings.”
Marianne Marston – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Marianne Marston is a British professional boxer. Record: 4-1 (3KOs). Next fight: Unified World Title fight in London on December 6th, 2015.
“Interesting you should ask that as I have a real struggle finding gloves that protect my hands adequately, and have had makes I like go out of business so it feels like I am always having to try out new gloves.
Recently had to change makes again (kept splitting the foam on the left hand) and have found my new favourite. And these rank as my all time favourites too:
1 – 3X Professional Choice 16oz. lace ups. Fantastic hand protection from a new company. They are custom making the gloves for my world title fight.
2 – PUG Mexican style. 16oz lace ups. No longer made.
3 – Reyes 16oz lace ups (Mexican style). Great hand protection but annoyingly bulky.”
Sulem Urbina – Twitter | Facebook
Sulem Urbina is a Mexican amateur boxer and the current 2014 Independence Cup Gold Medalist, 2014 Central American Games Silver Medalist, 2014 Continental Championships Bronze Medalist. Weight Class: 112 lb (51kg).
“Well for me my top three would be Winning, Fighting and Pro Mex. I feel like due to the size of my hands these gloves make me feel comfortable to punch without worrying. I can make a perfect fist and I know my hands are safe.”
Duda Yankovich – Twitter | Facebook
Duda Yankovich is a Serbian Brazilian fighter in boxing and mixed martial arts, she is also a former WIBA Junior Walterweight Boxing Champion of the World. Professional boxing record: 15-4 (11 KOs).
“1. Cleto Reyes Professional training.
2. IMF Tech Pro boxing gloves by Ringside.
3. Rival High Performance lace ups – for sparring. Rival Ultra bag gloves – for bag work. Love their tightness.”
Thank you!
HUGE thanks to everyone who contributed to this post! Please share if you think it was useful!
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If you could only pick 3 pairs of boxing gloves for your training, what brands and models would they be? Feel free to comment below!
Resources:
1. TheAverageBody.com. Average Hand. https://www.theaveragebody.com/average_hand_size.php
2. Martijn van Mensvoort. Sex differences: males vs. females & the hand! https://www.handresearch.com/hand/Evolutie/sekseEngels.htm
3. Information about female boxers taken from their personal sites and other sites as: https://wikipedia.org/, https://boxrec.com/, https://www.womenboxingrecords.com/, https://www.womenboxing.com/
Editor's Note: An article ‘The best boxing gloves for women' was originally published on Jan 24, 2014 and has been completely revamped and updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
The Best Boxing Gloves – Top 10 List
Cleto Reyes Hybrid (lace/velcro) Gloves Review
FYI, Machina Boxing is a brand of boxing gear made exclusively for women. Our boxing gloves are perfectly balanced, genuine leather and slightly lower profile (slender) than most unisex styles. Our brand is not well known yet, but our gloves are very popular with pros, amateurs and other serious women who don’t necessarily need pink gear just because they’re female. We’d love to be considered for this list!
There are not a lot of differences between the boxing men’s and women’s boxing rules. The biggest areas that are different are in the equipment and pre-fight regulations that women have then men do not.