{"id":217916,"date":"2025-10-16T14:29:20","date_gmt":"2025-10-16T14:29:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/217916\/"},"modified":"2025-10-16T14:29:20","modified_gmt":"2025-10-16T14:29:20","slug":"the-ultimate-ufc-custom-shorts-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/217916\/","title":{"rendered":"The Ultimate UFC Custom Shorts Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

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.<\/p>\n

The Venom era has provided some of the top UFC stars with their own individual, custom fight kits\u2026 and fans love it.<\/p>\n

Typically, it\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n

We take a look at some of the best UFC custom shorts and explain what makes them so good.<\/p>\n

Honourable Mentions<\/p>\n

It\u2019s 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\u2019ve had some custom shorts that have flown under the radar.<\/p>\n

Alternative colours tend to go slightly underappreciated despite initially standing out. Ian Garry<\/a>\u2018s purple shorts at UFC 303, Paddy Pimblett<\/a>\u2018s iconic orange shorts at UFC 314 and of course, Bryce Mitchell\u2019s camo shorts all now seem standard. Sean O\u2019Malley<\/a> donned pink shorts during parts of his UFC tenure, resonating with his colourful hairstyle.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>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 \u2013 Volkanovski vs Lopes at Kesaya Center on April 12, 2025 in Miami, FL \/PxImages Miami, Fl United States \u2013 ZUMAp175 20250412_zsa_p175_421 Copyright: xLouisxGrassex
\nFlops<\/p>\n

So, you\u2019ve been given the opportunity to really resonate with fans, show your individualism and stand out to the crowd. GRAB THE CHANCE WITH BOTH HANDS.<\/p>\n

Michael Chandler at UFC 314, Justin Gaethje at UFC 300<\/a> 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 \u2018pre-Reebok\u2019 shorts. Unfortunately, they were just a little too plain.<\/p>\n

First look at Stipe Miocic\u2019s custom shorts for #UFC309<\/a> \ud83c\udded\ud83c\uddf7 pic.twitter.com\/XmXuIqyir4<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) November 11, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n

The less said about Chandler\u2019s and Gaethje\u2019s the better.<\/p>\n

Juliana Pena\u2019s custom fight kit didn\u2019t 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.<\/p>\n

UFC Custom Shorts \u2013 The Mid Level<\/p>\n

Merab Dvalishvili\u2019s Georgian flag shorts, Leon Edwards\u2019 British\/Jamaican themed shorts, Israel Adesanya\u2019s anime style shorts and Dustin Poirier\u2019s floral print shorts are all good, but not \u2018great\u2019. Likewise, Dricus du Plessis, Charles Oliveira and Alex Pereira all have solid designs, but don\u2019t creep into the upper echelon section of our UFC custom shorts review.<\/p>\n

Dvalishvili\u2019s Georgian print is quickly becoming iconic and a feared sight for opponents of\u00a0The Machine. With the Red and White colours, the Georgian cross and a knight riding on horseback, Merab\u2019s shorts are great. They are topped off with an excerpt from a Georgian poem stating: \u201cA glorious death is better than a shameful life\u201c.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Leon Edwards\u2019 UFC custom shorts were good as well, but again, not amazing. The all green colourway didn\u2019t stand out and although very personal, they were too similar to the green shorts available to all fighters.<\/p>\n

Adesanya\u2019s 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\u2019re good, there\u2019s no doubt about it, but we expected more from someone as eccentric as Adesanya.<\/p>\n

Pics that go hard! \ud83d\ude24<\/p>\n

Israel Adesanya rockin\u2019 his new fight shorts for #UFC305<\/a> \ud83c\udde6\ud83c\uddfa pic.twitter.com\/ErCHsJ28Sf<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) August 15, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n

Poirier\u2019s UFC custom shorts in the floral style came from his iconic floral-patterned shirts. The subtle inclusion of blue diamonds relating to Poirier\u2019s nickname is a nice touch and there is no doubt that these are eye-catching.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Dricus du Plessis\u2019 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\u2019. The subtle inclusion of \u2018the big five\u2019 animals of Africa are a nice touch, however, are not obvious enough to really stand out, which is a shame.<\/p>\n

Charles Oliveria\u2019s custom shorts aren\u2019t bad, but they should have stood out more. For whatever reason, they don\u2019t seem to have resonated with fans. The colourful pattern was inspired by the Brazilian favelas and was chosen due to Oliveira\u2019s humble beginnings. They also feature his nickname \u2018Do Bronxs\u2019 down the side.<\/p>\n

\"Men's<\/p>\n

Alex Pereira\u2019s shorts are colourful and patterned. They\u2019re designed with Brazil\u2019s Patax\u00f3 tribe<\/a> 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.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

UFC Custom Shorts \u2013 Upper Echelon<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

Zhang Weili\u2019s 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\u2019s overall a great custom kit.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>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 \u2013 ZUMAo117 20240413_zsp_o117_107 Copyright: xMikaelxOnax<\/p>\n

Alexander Volkanivski\u2019s UFC custom shorts are great. They\u2019re personal, simple, but effective. Volkanovski decided to represent his Greek heritage with a pattern inspired by ancient Greece, featuring his nickname \u2018The Great\u2019 in Greek style lettering. Although not the most stand-out, there\u2019s something about these shorts that puts them in this category.<\/p>\n

Max Holloway\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>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 \u2013 ZUMAo117 20240413_zsp_o117_148 Copyright: xMikaelxOnax<\/p>\n

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\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n

Jon Jones\u2019s 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\u2019 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<\/a> on the front, joined by a small Christian cross, standing out in white.<\/p>\n

Elite Tier<\/p>\n

The elite tier is reserved for the best shorts that we\u2019ve 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.<\/p>\n

Khamzat Chimaev challenged du Plessis for the middleweight title at UFC 319 and wore some of the best UFC custom shorts we\u2019ve witnessed. As per the UFC website<\/a>:
\u201cThe design pays homage to Chimaev\u2019s Chechen heritage, with \u201cBorz\u201d \u2013 meaning \u201cwolf\u201d in Chechen \u2013 boldly featured against the backdrop of the iconic blue mountains of his homeland. It\u2019s a nod to his strength and pride that fuels his rise to title contention in UFC.\u201d<\/p>\n

The wolf really stands out and makes these shorts amazing.<\/p>\n

\"Khamzat<\/p>\n

Brandon Moreno\u2019s 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\u2019s worth, he\u2019s undefeated whilst wearing them!<\/p>\n

\"Men's<\/p>\n

Valentina Shevchenko\u2019s custom UFC 315 fight kit is hands down one of the best bespoke fight kits we\u2019ve 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\u2019s easily the best women\u2019s custom kit that we\u2019ve ever seen and it\u2019ll take something great to beat it.<\/p>\n

GOAT Shorts<\/p>\n

Although there should only be one pair of UFC custom shorts in the GOAT tier, these two just can\u2019t be split. Khalil Rountree Jr and Alexandre Pantoja\u2019s custom shorts are above and beyond anything we\u2019ve seen.<\/p>\n

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\u2019s sak yant tattoos<\/a>, as well as showing the mountains that surround Las Vegas, Rountree\u2019s hometown. The shorts are split in two like ying-yang to represent his duality of life.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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\u2019s the details which make these so good. He chose mythological Japanese dragons to symbolise power and good fortune. Pantoja\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Do you agree with our UFC custom shorts review? Let us know in the comments!<\/p>\n


\n