Boxing and brain issues

**Beanz** · 08-04-2017 10:14 AM

Originally Posted by walrus

https://www.google.com/amp/amp.www.c...knuckle-boxing

So bare knuckle may be safer

Which is what I have been saying, to much derision, elsewhere.

**Fenster** · 08-04-2017 12:04 PM

Padded gloves mean the combatants can absorb more blows to the head, less blows means less chance of brain damage.

Which is just as blatantly obvious as top boxers wearing gloves with less padding would score more devastating KOs/stoppages. You don't need experiments to prove a single blow with less padding has a more explosive impact you just have to watch UFC... or listen to fighters.

((Excellent article. The reason padded gloves were introduced is a promoter wanted to encourage fighters to throw more headshots to make fights more sellable/exciting. Promoters

))

**Spicoli** · 08-04-2017 12:14 PM

It would just seem that a glove covers more mass to jolt and shock the brain in the skull. Concussions may actually come faster and with longer lasting equilibrium problems while close to bare knuckle more risk to lacerate and break bones. I don't think majority of boxers who have suffered hand damage would ever favor lighter gloves. Boxing is just upfront about the impacts as it's clearly on display, but more and more It would seem pro football is up there with long term and brutal impacts of repeated blows to the head and concussions. You may not train to punch a guy but you train to break the body and heads hit ground or brain just bounces off the skull same result often. They are on the road to turning football into flag football as result.

X · 08-04-2017 03:30 PM

I suffered from lots of hand injuries throughout my amateur career, and always sparred with heavy gloves.

Having punched lots of people, and been punched by lots of people with different gloves for over 12 years I found big differences.

Bigger gloves protect the hands better, so I was always throwing more punches as I was less concerned about catching the guy's elbow or forehead and damaging my hands. I always felt a bit more 'thud' when I hit people with bigger gloves but stoppages were mainly the ref stepping in or as a result of cumulative punches. Bigger gloves are heavier, so fighters tend to drop their hands a bit more in the later rounds too.

Smaller gloves made me target my shots more carefully, so maybe they were just better aimed punches, but I got more one punch knockouts and fight ending single shots with them. Lighter gloves definitely cause more facial damage. I preferred the lighter gloves in competition (but heavier ones in sparring, as I said)

so, I reckon heavier gloves are more likely to protect your hands, but are more likely to give you cumulative brain injuries. Lighter gloves lead to more explosive KOs and facial (plus hand) damage.

Some people swear that gloves like Grants are 'punchers gloves'. I never bought into that. I liked Reyes as they had just the right amount of weight at the front of the glove. I always thought Grants had too much weight on the wrist part ...... though they always made a big noise when you hit something, so they sounded good!! I think lots of people (including fighters, fans and judges) are suckered by the noise.

I did Taekwondo for five years too. Tournament gloves had open fingers but really thick foam padding over the knuckles. It was nigh on impossible to knock someone out with a punch (which I don't think they wanted anyway), but ironically the footpads were quite thin so you would see umpteen devastating knockouts by all sorts of kicks, broken faces, lost teeth and multiple busted toes and shins too!

I never did MMA so I wouldn't know about their gloves, I've never even tried one on.