Of all the gymnastic grips we tested, the Victory Grips were not only the best performers, but they also weren't the most expensive available. Every pair of gymnastic grips in this guide is worth using, but Victory Grips Leather Gymnastic Grips, especially the 3-hole versions, are a shining example of just how good a piece of training equipment can be when someone throws out preconceived notions and focuses on making the best product available.

Victory Grips

Victory Leather Grips (5 ratings & reviews) The leather 3 finger and 4 finger grips provide protection to vulnerable areas with a soft hand feel while still providing some bare skin on the bar for a mental connection.The grips fit onto the middle, ring and little finger with a protective covering around the wrist, which is vulnerable in the use of the false grip The design leaves the hook grip open for barbell work and allows for seamless transitions between exercise elements. The leather is carefully chosen to have proper texture and thickness to ensure comfort, protection, and performance from the first use. Its one-piece construction ensures maximum durability during high intensity gymnastics skills. The grips will stretch about a half inch during its lifecycle and should last up to 6 months dependent on intensity and volume of training. Buy Now ($40.00)

The Victory Grips were designed by Victor Pellegrino who competed both in gymnastics as well as CrossFit and Grid. We had a chance to speak with Victor on why he perceived his grips to be better than others (we also spoke with other companies), and the passion Victor has for gymnastic grips is likely what caused him to produce the best that are currently on the market.

The first thing you notice about victory grips is how soft the leather is compared to others. Our budget pick, the Rogue V2 Gymnastic Grips are cheaper, but the leather is also much rougher and at first is almost a chore to use and break in. The reason most other gymnastic grips leather is rougher is that it's chrome tanned and often uses a less expensive part of the cow. If you've ever bought a leather jacket or shoes, you understand the difference between top grain and "genuine" leather. The same can be said for the leather used in gymnastic grips.

The leather Victory Grips uses milled vegetable tanned leather which allows the grips to be softer, durable, yet thin enough that it doesn't get in the way during barbell cycling or when using the rings or pull-up bar. Out of all the grips we tried, the leather on the Victory Grips was the most comfortable without question. Granted, we didn't find it to grip as well as our runner-up pick, the Bear Komplex Carbon Fiber Gymnastic Grips, but they weren't far off and were much more comfortable.

The Victory Grips were one of the first pairs of 3-hole gymnastic grips to come to market. The advantage of the three finger holes verses two is the design does a better job of covering the hand where calluses typically form as well as keeping the grips from sliding off the hand. Another benefit of leaving the index finger free is it allows for more dexterity for the hook grip during Olympic lifts.

In addition to being unique in having 3-finger holes, the holes themselves are intelligently designed as well. Rather than the typical circular finger holes, the Victory Grips have rectangular holes with rounded corners to feel comfortable when you hold the barbell in the front rack or during handstand pushups that keep the pressure off the fingers. The design of the grips uses a curvilinear shape on the palm that allows for natural articulation and provides protection during false grip movements (something no other grips we tested had.)

Victory Grips offers their grips both with a plastic ring buckle and without. In our testing, we didn't really find one to be better than the other, but if the plastic ring bothers your, they are one of the only companies producing grips without the plastic ring. The wrist strap that goes through the plastic ring is made of the same leather used on the palm along with some stitched on velcro. This is by far the most comfortable strap we used as practically all other competitors use just velcro, or velcro and cloth.

The final advantage of the Victory Grips is that they are designed to be used with a fold going over the pull-up bar or rings. Few CrossFitters I talk to understand that you want your grips to not only protect from ripping, but also to help with grip, and the fold over the bar allows the grips to act as a dowel of sorts for support during pull-ups and other movements. Whenever you purchase traditional gymnastic grips with the two hole design, we suggest buying extra-large ones so you can have this effect, however, since the Victory Grips are designed to be used in this way, purchasing an extra-large par is unnecessary.

The Victory Grips were easy to break in due to the soft leather and have lasted without much stretching or wear since we started testing them. There are many gymnastic grips available, but in our opinion, the Victory Grips are the absolute best.