Boxing 101: What Boxing Gloves Do the Professionals Use?

Boxing 101: What Boxing Gloves Do the Professionals Use?

We all love a nice evening boxing match. It can get pretty tense, especially when your favorite professional boxers are in the ring. Well, other than their popularity, strength, and stamina; it is very important what boxing gloves do the professionals use too!


There are many boxing glove brands around, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Some offer better padding while sacrificing punching power, while some are heavier than others. The key is in balance with the individual fighting style.


So, let’s check out what boxing gloves do the professionals use in the ring these days!

Anthony Joshua

Anthony Joshua - one of the most successful heavyweight boxers of today.

Anthony Joshua is one of the most successful heavyweight boxers of today, being a unified heavyweight champion two times, first between 2016 and June 2019, before losing the title to Andy Ruiz Jr., and regaining it in December 2019. His boxing style is highly technical, with calculated, powerful punches; albeit, with subpar defense. Out of 24 fights, he has 23 wins - 21 of them being KOs.

What Boxing Gloves Does Anthony Joshua Use?

Anthony Joshua uses the Rival RFX-Guerrero boxing gloves.

In most of his matches, you can see Anthony Joshua wearing the Rival RFX-Guerrero boxing gloves. This brand is renowned for making punchers’ gloves, so that is a perfect fit for Anthony Joshua. The secret is in the two types of foam that are fitted into the leather. This gives the gloves much-needed stability and high protection for the hands. There are two variants of Guerrero gloves, the SF-F and HDE-F. The SF-F utilizes a soft polyurethane foam that gives the glove a soft feel. On the other hand, the HDE-F variant features high-density EVA leather that gives it a stiffer feeling, which is great for powerful punches and extra protection.

Yunier Dorticos

Yunier Dorticos, a Cuban beast.

Yunier Dorticos is a professional boxer hailing from Cuba. He has the IBF cruiserweight belt since 2019 and held the WBA cruiserweight belt from 2017 to 2018. Yunier is the second-best cruiserweight boxer right now. His explosive punches are signature to his style, and this style has earned him a 91% KO ratio. Out of 25 fights, he won 24 times (22 by KO) and got KO-ed once.

What Boxing Gloves Does Yunier Dorticos Use?

Yunier uses the hand-stitched Grant gloves.

Yunier Dorticos prefers the hand-stitched Grant boxing gloves. Unlike the most Mexican-made boxing gloves that focus solely on power, the Grant boxing gloves add more padding for extra protection to the individual fighter. The construction of these boxing gloves is next to none when it comes to pure quality. So, these boxing gloves just help to further improve the explosive punching style that Dorticos utilizes in most of his fights. 

Arsen Goulamirian

 Arsen Goulamirian is one of the top ten best boxing cruiserweights right now.

Arsen Goulamirian is one of the top ten best boxing cruiserweights right now. He holds the WBA (super) cruiserweight title since 2019. Arsen is unique for his track record right now, as he won all 26 matches he participated in (18 of the wins were KOs). He packs a punch, and his boxing style is focused on getting that KO.

What Boxing Gloves Does Arsen Goulamirian Use?

Arsen Goulamirian also uses Grant boxing gloves.

Arsen Goulamirian also uses Grant boxing gloves, that complement his fighting style very nicely. These gloves are awesome for punchers as they strike a perfect balance between minimal padding in the knuckles and soft, pillowy padding. This feature makes Grant boxing gloves very comfortable, while also retaining nice fit to the fighters’ hands. Also, during the fight, Grant boxing gloves are very beautiful to look at. Every punch seems more impactful when you see Arsen strike with these gloves.

Manny Pacquiao

Manny is a Filipino-born professional boxer who is regarded as one of the best boxers ever.

Manny is a Filipino-born professional boxer who is regarded as one of the best boxers ever. His southpaw style is amazing, and that’s what got him the status as the only boxer who was world champion in eight divisions. He won world titles in four of eight divisions, which are flyweight, featherweight, lightweight, and welterweight. Out of 71 fights, he won 62 (39 by KO), lost 7 fights, and had 2 draws.

What Boxing Gloves Does Manny Pacquiao Use?

Manny Pacquiao prefers Cleto Reyes gloves, a Mexican boxing glove brand.

Manny Pacquiao prefers Cleto Reyes gloves, a Mexican boxing glove brand. These boxing gloves are awesome as they are hand-stitched, with the inexplainable amount of energy put into creating each individual glove. Also, once you put them on, they feel like you don’t have any boxing gloves on, as they are very natural. No wonder that Pacquiao is so strong with his southpaw style! Also, Cleto Reyes gloves are actually puncher’s gloves, as they have less padding on the knuckles. So, is the more punching power and less hand protection trade worth it? For Manny Pacquiao, it certainly is.

Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. is a boxing legend for sure.

Even though he has apparently retired from boxing ring again, Floyd is a boxing legend nevertheless. He retired without being defeated by any of his opponents, as his track record is 50 wins out of 50 fights (27 of them being KO). Floyd is thought to be the best defensive boxer in history. Maybe this style got him multiple world titles for five weight classes!

What Boxing Gloves Does Floyd Mayweather Use?

Floyd Mayweather Jr. uses Grant boxing gloves in the ring.

Before, Floyd used Winning gloves but has transferred over to Grant gloves over time. These gloves feature superb construction and have excellent hand protection. The hand protection isn’t pillowy like in the case of Winning gloves, but the superb wrist support more than makes up for it. Also, Floyd prefers these gloves as they conform very nicely to his hands, and further enhances his defensive boxing style. Not to mention the stylish looks!


For a more detailed breakdown of what boxing gloves does Floyd Mayweather Jr. use, check out this post.

Saul Alvarez

Saul Alvarez is a Mexican boxer with one of the most unique fighting styles on the scene today.

Also known as Canelo Alvarez, he has a lot of belts on himself. Saul Alvarez holds the unified WBA (super), WBC, and lineal middleweight titles since 2018. He is regarded as one of the best boxers the world has ever seen, with his signature counterattack style that catches a lot of his opponents off-guard. Maybe that’s why he has an excellent track record: out of 56 fights, he has 53 wins (36 of them were KO), only one loss, and two draws.

What Boxing Gloves Does Saul Alvarez Use?

Alvarez prefers to use Winning gloves.

To further improve his counterattacks, Alvarez prefers to use Winning gloves. The Winning gloves are simply awesome, their construction is top-notch, and these gloves will certainly last for a while. Also, Winning gloves have superb hand protection, like a pillow for your hands. They are pretty expensive, but the Japanese craftmanship more than makes up for the price, once Saul Alvarez is in the ring.

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