Since Venom became the official kit supplier of the UFC, we have seen UFC custom shorts and fight kits created for many fighters. The pre-Reebok era saw almost every fighter express themselves through fight kit customisation; however, from 2015, individuality was truly lost as all fighters were shoehorned into only wearing specific colours and patterns.
The Venom era has provided some of the top UFC stars with their own individual, custom fight kits… and fans love it.
Typically, it’s main event PPV stars who get custom kits or those who are competing in title fights, but other fighters have been gifted the chance to fight in specific, different outfits with the intention of standing out and expressing themselves through their attire.
We take a look at some of the best UFC custom shorts and explain what makes them so good.
Honourable Mentions
It’s worth noting that not all UFC custom shorts stand out as much as they should. Whilst we have some crazy patterns in recent times, we’ve had some custom shorts that have flown under the radar.
Alternative colours tend to go slightly underappreciated despite initially standing out. Ian Garry‘s purple shorts at UFC 303, Paddy Pimblett‘s iconic orange shorts at UFC 314 and of course, Bryce Mitchell’s camo shorts all now seem standard. Sean O’Malley donned pink shorts during parts of his UFC tenure, resonating with his colourful hairstyle.
April 12, 2025, Miami, Fl, Miami, Fl, United States: Michael Chandler and Paddy Pimblett meet in the octagon for a 3-round bout at UFC 314 – Volkanovski vs Lopes at Kesaya Center on April 12, 2025 in Miami, FL /PxImages Miami, Fl United States – ZUMAp175 20250412_zsa_p175_421 Copyright: xLouisxGrassex
Flops
So, you’ve been given the opportunity to really resonate with fans, show your individualism and stand out to the crowd. GRAB THE CHANCE WITH BOTH HANDS.
Michael Chandler at UFC 314, Justin Gaethje at UFC 300 and Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 have all passed up on the opportunity to really stand out and make a point. Granted, Miocic was paying homage to his previous ‘pre-Reebok’ shorts. Unfortunately, they were just a little too plain.
First look at Stipe Miocic’s custom shorts for #UFC309 🇭🇷 pic.twitter.com/XmXuIqyir4
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) November 11, 2024
The less said about Chandler’s and Gaethje’s the better.
Juliana Pena’s custom fight kit didn’t stand out either, missing a huge opportunity. She chooses to wear a fight vest, meaning she could have really stood out in the octagon; however, it failed to deliver.
UFC Custom Shorts – The Mid Level
Merab Dvalishvili’s Georgian flag shorts, Leon Edwards’ British/Jamaican themed shorts, Israel Adesanya’s anime style shorts and Dustin Poirier’s floral print shorts are all good, but not ‘great’. Likewise, Dricus du Plessis, Charles Oliveira and Alex Pereira all have solid designs, but don’t creep into the upper echelon section of our UFC custom shorts review.
Dvalishvili’s Georgian print is quickly becoming iconic and a feared sight for opponents of The Machine. With the Red and White colours, the Georgian cross and a knight riding on horseback, Merab’s shorts are great. They are topped off with an excerpt from a Georgian poem stating: “A glorious death is better than a shameful life“.
Leon Edwards’ UFC custom shorts were good as well, but again, not amazing. The all green colourway didn’t stand out and although very personal, they were too similar to the green shorts available to all fighters.
Adesanya’s shorts stood out with the black and lightning yellow style. According to the Venom website, Izzy took inspiration from his love of anime, manga, and his electric fighting style. They’re good, there’s no doubt about it, but we expected more from someone as eccentric as Adesanya.
Pics that go hard! 😤
Israel Adesanya rockin’ his new fight shorts for #UFC305 🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/ErCHsJ28Sf
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) August 15, 2024
Poirier’s UFC custom shorts in the floral style came from his iconic floral-patterned shirts. The subtle inclusion of blue diamonds relating to Poirier’s nickname is a nice touch and there is no doubt that these are eye-catching.
Dricus du Plessis’ design is extremely personal to him, leaning on his South African heritage. Predominantly green with the South African flag colours along the belt line as well as throughout the short design overall, they are instantly recognisable as du Plessis’. The subtle inclusion of ‘the big five’ animals of Africa are a nice touch, however, are not obvious enough to really stand out, which is a shame.
Charles Oliveria’s custom shorts aren’t bad, but they should have stood out more. For whatever reason, they don’t seem to have resonated with fans. The colourful pattern was inspired by the Brazilian favelas and was chosen due to Oliveira’s humble beginnings. They also feature his nickname ‘Do Bronxs’ down the side.
Alex Pereira’s shorts are colourful and patterned. They’re designed with Brazil’s Pataxó tribe in mind, the tribe to which Pereira belongs. For his UFC 320 title challenge, he changed up the design slightly, going half and half with his original style but adding a leopard print the the left-hand side. A nice touch to keep things fresh.
UFC Custom Shorts – Upper Echelon
Islam Makhachev, Zhang Weili, Alexander Volkanovski, Max Holloway, Ilia Topuria and Jon Jones really took the opportunity given to them and created great custom fight kits.
Makhachev paid homage to his Dagestani background with a simple black, white and grey colourway, depicting mountains and a dagger. Very personal, very clear and very cool.
Zhang Weili’s custom kit for UFC 300 was epic. She took the chance she was given and ran with it. She went with a predominantly red colourway with elements of black, white and gold. She leaned into her Chinese heritage with a dragon-inspired red and gold motif. It’s overall a great custom kit.
April 13, 2024, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA: ZHANG WEILI 24-3 of Beijing, China defeats YAN XIAONAN 17-3 of Beijing, China by unanimous decision during UFC 300 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas Las Vegas USA – ZUMAo117 20240413_zsp_o117_107 Copyright: xMikaelxOnax
Alexander Volkanivski’s UFC custom shorts are great. They’re personal, simple, but effective. Volkanovski decided to represent his Greek heritage with a pattern inspired by ancient Greece, featuring his nickname ‘The Great’ in Greek style lettering. Although not the most stand-out, there’s something about these shorts that puts them in this category.
Max Holloway’s floral print really stood out when he first donned them against Gaethje at UFC 300. He was able to show off his Hawaiian background through his chosen pattern. The performance that Holloway put in on the night topped off the shorts and those shorts will go down in history due to the knockout Holloway delivered.
April 13, 2024, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA: MAX HOLLOWAY 26-7 of Waianae, Hawaii defeats JUSTIN GAETHJE 26-5 of Denver, CO by KO right hand at 4:59 of round 5 during UFC 300 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas Las Vegas USA – ZUMAo117 20240413_zsp_o117_148 Copyright: xMikaelxOnax
Undefeated megastar, Ilia Topuria has some of the best UFC custom shorts in the game. The red and gold colourway, the pattern and the ode to his nickname cement these in the upper echelon of UFC custom shorts. Spain’s history of bullfighting is represented with the outline of a bull on the shorts, giving them a personal touch. The opportunity was given, and it was certainly taken.
Jon Jones’s bespoke shorts at UFC 309 highlight a number of the good elements that are available for experienced fighters in the UFC custom shorts era. Going for a red and black colourway with elements of gold and white, Jones’ shorts had a lot going on. He gives an ode to his own tattoo, a Bible passage from Philippians 4:13. He also has the image of a lion on the hunt on the front, joined by a small Christian cross, standing out in white.
Elite Tier
The elite tier is reserved for the best shorts that we’ve seen so far in the UFC custom shorts era. Khamzat Chimaev, Brandon Moreno and Valentina Shevchenko have all put in some of the most elite designs for the UFC custom shorts and really took the chance to individualise their designs, making them iconic.
Khamzat Chimaev challenged du Plessis for the middleweight title at UFC 319 and wore some of the best UFC custom shorts we’ve witnessed. As per the UFC website:
“The design pays homage to Chimaev’s Chechen heritage, with “Borz” – meaning “wolf” in Chechen – boldly featured against the backdrop of the iconic blue mountains of his homeland. It’s a nod to his strength and pride that fuels his rise to title contention in UFC.”
The wolf really stands out and makes these shorts amazing.
Brandon Moreno’s custom shorts have quickly turned iconic. The black and red shorts feature plenty of colour with an eccentric image of Quetzalcoatl, the Aztec god known as the feathered serpent, in green and white. It gives a nod to his Mexican heritage and, for what it’s worth, he’s undefeated whilst wearing them!
Valentina Shevchenko’s custom UFC 315 fight kit is hands down one of the best bespoke fight kits we’ve ever been treated to. Taking on Manon Fiorot, Shevchenko walked to the octagon in a dark green style, featuring a dragon and a tiger, paying homage to Muay Thai. It also gives a nod to her strong connection to Thailand through scripture. It’s easily the best women’s custom kit that we’ve ever seen and it’ll take something great to beat it.
GOAT Shorts
Although there should only be one pair of UFC custom shorts in the GOAT tier, these two just can’t be split. Khalil Rountree Jr and Alexandre Pantoja’s custom shorts are above and beyond anything we’ve seen.
Rountree Jr donned UFC custom shorts for UFC Baku and walked to the octagon in shorts with a predominantly grey and white colourway. They mimic Rountree’s sak yant tattoos, as well as showing the mountains that surround Las Vegas, Rountree’s hometown. The shorts are split in two like ying-yang to represent his duality of life.
On par with the epic shorts created by Venom and Rountree Jr are the UFC custom shorts for flyweight champion, Alexandre Pantoja. The Brazilian dons a predominantly red and black kit, but it’s the details which make these so good. He chose mythological Japanese dragons to symbolise power and good fortune. Pantoja’s Brazilian roots are also represented through waves related to the beaches of Brazil. Everything about these stands out and Pantoja really took the opportunity to create amazing shorts.
Do you agree with our UFC custom shorts review? Let us know in the comments!