How We Review Products
Every product on The Fight Store has a research-based editorial assessment. It is not a hands-on review: unless an assessment explicitly says otherwise, we have not owned, worn or tested the product.
AI-assisted, human-directed, evidence-based
AI tools may assist with research organisation, comparison and drafting. A human directs the editorial process, checks the evidence and approves every assessment before it is published. AI does not set ratings on its own or publish anything by itself.
Where our information comes from
Depending on the product, our research may draw on:
- Manufacturers' own product pages and specifications
- Official technical documentation
- Retailer listings
- Governing-body and other official material
- Relevant third-party reviews
- Publicly available customer-review evidence, where we explicitly attribute it
Each assessment lists its sources and shows when it was last reviewed and last verified. Sources and verification dates are kept for each assessment as a whole, not necessarily for every individual statement.
Claims, evidence and gaps
A manufacturer's claim stays a manufacturer's claim unless we find independent support for it, and we describe it that way. Where a detail can't be confirmed from reliable sources, the product page marks it "Not confirmed" rather than guessing.
How we rate
We rate each product from one to five stars on a few criteria, one at a time. There's no overall score, because one number would hide the trade-offs that matter when you're choosing kit.
The criteria depend on the kind of equipment:
- Protective and training kit: Protection, Comfort, Materials & Construction and Value.
- Clothing, uniforms and martial arts shoes: Materials & Construction, Value, and Fit & Movement or Comfort. They don't get a Protection score, because that would suggest a protective job they don't do.
Materials & Construction looks at what the product is made of and how it's put together, as its maker or a named retailer describes it. It isn't a prediction of how long the product will last, and a longer list of specifications doesn't earn a higher score.
Value compares what a product offers with what similar kit at a similar price normally offers. We place each product in a price band (budget, mid-range or premium) from its regular UK price, never a sale price, against a dated survey of UK prices for that kind of kit. Then we compare its confirmed features with what that band normally offers. A detail its maker doesn't publish never counts against it.
When the evidence isn't enough to rate a criterion fairly, we show it as Not rated, with the reason, rather than guess. You'll also see Not rated where a criterion doesn't apply, or where we couldn't confirm a regular UK price.
Each rating is our editorial judgement from the evidence available, and "Why we rated it this way" on the product page gives the reasons. Our ratings are not customer reviews, laboratory measurements or the results of hands-on testing.
Prices, stock and purchase links
Any price, stock or delivery details we mention are observations from a specific date and can change at any time. Purchase links and availability can also change after we publish, so always check the seller's current listing before you buy.
Recommendation badges
A badge such as "Good for beginners" or "Good value" applies within one category, and only when a product meets the rule for that badge. We don't award "Best for..." badges: that would need hands-on testing or strong independent comparisons, which we don't have.
Commission
Some purchase links may earn us commission. That never affects which products we cover, how we rate them, or what we recommend.
Corrections
If you think something is wrong or out of date, email contact@thefightstore.co.uk and we'll check it. Our Editorial Policy sets out the standards we work to.