Ethylene-vinyl acetate rubber (EVM) vulcanizates cured by dicumyl peroxide (DCP) with excellent mechanical properties were obtained by adding superfluous magnesium hydroxides (MH)/methacrylic acid (MAA). Different factors such as the DCP content and MH content were investigated to reveal their effects on the properties of the MH/MAA-filled EVM vulcanizates. The formulation of DCP of 2 phr, MH of 60 phr, and MAA of 5 phr is recommended for the EVM vulcanizates with excellent mechanical properties. The stress relaxation and stress softening behavior of MH/MAA-filled EVM vulcanizates were studied. The stress relaxation and stress softening became faster and more obvious with increasing MH content. The hot air aging resistance of EVM vulcanizates filled with different fillers such as silica and high abrasion furnace were compared, and the MH/MAA-filled EVM vulcanizates had the best aging resistance at 40-phr filler content. The MH/MAA-filled EVM vulcanizates had excellent flame retardancy due to the high MH content. (C) 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 119: 1813-1819, 2011