MXA TEAM TESTED: LEATT GPX 5.5 ULTRAWELD GEAR

WHAT IS IT? The Leatt GPX 5.5 Ultraweld gear is Leatt’s top-of-the-line motocross race wear. Leatt first began by making neck braces, and now they’ve expanded into the motocross gear market. 

WHAT’S IT COST? $69.99 (jersey), $189.99 (pants).

CONTACT? www.leatt.com or (800) 691-3314.

WHAT STANDS OUT? Here’s a list of things that stand out with the Leatt GPX 5.5 Ultraweld gear. 

(1) Jersey. The Leatt GPX 5.5 Ultraweld jersey is lightweight and tight-fitting. It has a race-fit chassis that can be worn over or under a chest protector. The moisture-cool stretch fabric is made up of 90-percent polyester and 10-percent spandex, and features air channels and laser-cut holes to keep your body temperature down. The fabric has a unique coating that is dirt-, water- and stain-resistant. It has welded seams at the cuff and hem for maximum comfort, a tag-less neck and stretchable collar that is compatible with neck braces. The jersey also features a perforated brush guard protection material on the elbows and a small silicone pant grip on the jersey tail.

(2) Pants. The Leatt GPX 5.5 Ultraweld pants are made from a lightweight rip-stop stretch material to keep your legs unrestricted and body temperature down. The knee area features an internal knee-brace prevention system, while a waist gripper was added to keep your pants from sliding around on gripper seats. The 9- by 5-1/2-inch full-grain leather patches on the inner legs were added to increase bike grip and durability. The pants have a pre-curved design with an anti-odor, moisture-cool, mesh-liner, side-strap micro waist adjusters on the outer hips and a 360-degree silicone grip inside the waistband. 

(3) Fit. Both the pants and jersey have an athletic-fit. Modern high-end motocross gear is evolving towards unrestrictive movement. The Leatt GPX 5.5 pants are tight around the thighs with a sturdy molded rubber piece on the back side of the waistband to increase durability and keep the pants in place. The micro-adjusting side straps also mimic a sans-a-belt system to give you a wide range of adjustment. The jersey has an athletic fit, but it isn’t as tight as the pants, allowing freedom of movement.  

(4) Durability. The Leatt GPX 5.5 Ultraweld gear held up strong, even against our toughest testers. We only noticed slight holes developing in the knee brace area—above the leather patches from being roosted. The terms “lightweight” and “breathable” are usually code words for “not durable,” but the Leatt GPX 5.5 Ultraweld was impressive in this department, and the abrasions we had were limited to the front of the knee area. 

(5) Performance. The best trait of the Leatt GPX 5.5 gear was its unrestricted movement. With a stretchable waistband and free-moving chassis, our legs were never hindered. The jersey was lightweight and breathable. It almost felt like we weren’t wearing it.

(6) Options. The Leatt GPX 5.5 Ultraweld gear comes in three different designs and five different color options. The sizing on the jersey ranges from small to double-extra large, while the pants come in sizes extra small to double-extra large, which is equivalent to 28- to 38-inch waists.

WHAT’S THE SQUAWK? The zipper on the pants won’t come all the way up until you close the secondary zipper-lock Velcro strap above it. We are not big fans of using “small,” “medium” and “large” to describe our pant sizes. We’d much rather see a label inside the pants that said 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38. 

MXA RATING: The best motocross gear is the type you don’t notice you’re wearing. It slips on with ease, is comfortable around the pits and durable on the racetrack. The Leatt GPX 5.5 Ultraweld did well on these categories. We recommend it to anyone who doesn’t mind wearing snug pants.