Gymtops: the Latest in MMA Gear

The UFC/MMA boom has become more than just athletic competition. It is the genesis, or at least the continued evolution, of a whole new subculture and lifestyle. MMA fans love to show off their acceptance of and affiliation to the lifestyle by sporting a vast array of MMA gear.

Fortunately for all the MMA apparel addicts, Jay over at Gymtops.com had the foresight to develop a blog dedicated to the Mixed Martial Arts gear enthusiasts. A few years ago he was watching UFC/K1 and noticed the fighters entering the ring/cage with different tee-shirts and shorts. This was just a first step, as Jay puts it, “Then I started to notice the brands and got curious to find out the meaning behind each and how deep MMA merchandising was...and it was very deep. I found a bunch of brands from around the world and thought it [a blog] would be an excellent resource for curious minds like mine.”

So in August of 2007 he launched Gymtops.com and the blog offers up a ton of great information. Recently, Jay contacted me in hopes that I might be able to provide insight as a guest writer. I liked the idea, but my knowledge of MMA apparel sits somewhere between slim and none. I told him as much, and I also spent a lot of time on his blog.

In a matter of minutes I was much better informed. Maybe you know the brand VAS, Victory Amongst Soldiers, but you probably didn’t know that it is a division of VASYLI International, an Australian company that’s been pumping out high-quality foot care and footwear products for over 25 years. Were you aware that Contract Killer was the brainchild of pro paint-baller John Marques and designer Chris Corcino? They’ve got a pretty sweet “Me Vale” shirt on the market right now too. Do you want to win a free Triumph United shirt? Gymtops.com is the place to get in the running. And if you don’t win, don’t worry. They try to do giveaways before each major UFC event and Jay said, “We will have some pretty cool contests in the future. Stay tuned.”

I know I will stay tuned because Jay really has done a tremendous job filling an important niche in the MMA Ocean, and that is exactly what he set out to do. When asked about what he hoped the reader will get out of Gymtops, Jay said, “We just hope we are able to keep the MMA gear enthusiast informed of cool products within their lifestyle without having to have a million sites bookmarked.”

It is amazing when we consider that this whole fight gear industry is still waddling around in diapers. It has blown up right along side the sport, but we might be seeing just the tip of the iceberg. When asked about the MMA apparel industry’s direction over the next couple years, Jay responded, “BIG! The sport is already growing at an alarming rate. We get so many emails about new products from apparel companies we never heard of, and some of the things locals are doing for the sport is insane.”

All these new companies desperately need to promote their products. Jay wants to help each and every one of them, stating, “We really hope that we can provide a platform that will allow apparel companies to promote their gear to a wider audience and keep our readers informed of the latest and greatest news on gear in their favorite sport.”

Gymtops is doing a good job of putting shirts on the backs of fans everywhere and not just any shirt, but the one that is right for them. As I mentioned earlier, I’m an MMA apparel novice. I want to display my love for the sport, but I’m too old and too tattoo-less to wear over-the-top skull and crossbones shirts. I only have one lowly UFC 85 shirt (and it was given to me) to show that I’m an MMA fan. But with the help of Jay and the guys at Gymtops.com, I think it is about time I found some gear that is right for me.

Who knows, maybe soon you will see an article about my introduction into the vast world of MMA clothing...sounds super exciting right?