What really stands out with these is that when you are sparring, grappling, or working on MMA drills you do not have to worry about these shin guards coming off as you might have had to in the past when working with the muay thai shin guards. Despite the fact that they are synthetic leather they are very good quality and very affordable, especially when compared to the Combat Sports model (which is virtually the same shin guard, but comes in red or blue instead of black). The only down fall that I see to these guards is the elastic strap around the foot. The stitching that connects the strap to the shin guard isn't very sturdy and I have already had to do a bit of preventative maintenance to make sure the strap does not detach from the guard.