Quote (StephanePare @ Dec 2 2014 05:49pm)
The gloves are fine, the guys can close their hands just fine when trying to grapple. The problem isn't the gloves, it's the rules and how they're enforced.
Make it a, loss by disqualification if a fight is stopped due to an eye poke, I guarantee eye pokes will disappear entirely and no one will talk about the gloves anymore.
The problem is that the fight isn't always stopped, in fact it almost never is... And then the fighter who got poked in the eye is at a disadvantage, not just because he might have a problem with his eye, but because his reflexes are going to try to keep him from getting poked in the eye again, which shouldn't be necessary.
Have you ever worn ufc gloves? You can close your hand, obviously, but that's not the problem, the problem is that if you aren't trying to hold a fist the gloves are naturally going to open your hand up. They almost become a strain to wear after a while. There is no reason for them to be like that. Pride gloves are a lot better for that reason alone.
Other reasons pride gloves are superior:
Lace-up allows for much tighter gloves
thumb loop adds stability for grappling
completely open palm increases dexterity for grappling
But I think the pride style gloves could use a bit of improvement too, most notably I think the finger loops should be a bit wider, if you have small hands your fingers can slip out of them.
I've never heard of anyone who has used both and prefers the UFC gloves... Dana has even agreed that the UFC gloves are not ideal. They've talked about changing them for years.