NEW YORK – Ahead of UFC 309, fighters have been notified of a major change.
For Saturday’s event, which takes place at Madison Square Garden, fighters were notified that the old-style gloves will be used rather than the new-style ones that were implemented June 1.
The new glove design was introduced to attempt preventing eye pokes and broken hands. However, since the implementation of the new gloves, the knockout rate has dropped to 22.9 percent, and the decision rate has increased 11.5 percent.
UFC CEO Dana White explained why the promotion decided to bring the old gloves back.
“There were a lot of complaints,” White said during Thursday’s UFC 309 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.’ …Yes, the new gloves are now the old gloves.”
UFC 309 headliner, heavyweight champion Jon Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC), expressed his frustration with the new gloves ahead of his first title defense against Stipe Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC). However, Jones insists that the change in gloves was not something he asked for.
“This was not my request,” Jones said during a UFC 309 media scrum (h/t Carlos Contreras Legaspi). “This was brand new news to me just a few days ago. I’m glad that he hit me with it because it was relieving.”
UFC 309 (pay-per-view, ESPNews/Hulu/FX, ESPN+) takes place Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.
