Friday night’s boxing match between Jake Paul and Anthony Joshua will be broadcast on Netflix, and the wardrobe accompanying the bout has become part of the spectacle. Jake Paul’s ring attire, described by Bushwick-based designer Benny Goldberg as a Hulk Hogan–inspired ensemble, blends alligator skin, rattlesnake skin, and vintage wrestling flair in homage to the late Hogan. The look is designed for a moment that industry observers forecast could attract tens of millions of viewers, with numbers projected in the 50 to 55 million range.
“To be able to share that work on such a big stage, for such a big audience, that’s what you dream of,” Goldberg told The Post. The designer, 25, said the project began with a quick timeline but was driven by a desire to create something uniquely cinematic for a fight that crosses music, fashion, and sport.
Goldberg said he received the inquiry while he was on a plane home to Michigan, with roughly two months to complete the look. Paul’s original plan had called for unveiling the outfit in a November showdown against Gervonta Davis, the undefeated lightweight champion, but that fight was scrapped after Davis’ ex-girlfriend filed a civil suit alleging domestic battery. Despite the setback, Paul pressed ahead with the Joshua bout. The alligator skin shipped to Goldberg is embedded in the jacket’s yellow flame motif on the sleeves, and the shorts’ waistband is embroidered with a rattlesnake-skin pattern. The boots’ straps carry rattlesnake skin Paul hunted on his Georgia ranch.
Back-of-jacket details reinforce the homage: a nameplate crafted from rattlesnake skin sits across the upper back, while Paul’s own name is echoed in the shorts’ waistband with a snakeskin texture. The outfit’s components extend beyond the jacket and shorts. Goldbergl said the tailor-made boots feature skin accents, and the entire look relies on luxe materials sourced in New York’s Garment District, including satin, red and yellow lambskin, and leather, to achieve a premium, show-ready finish. Paul also hunted the rattlesnake used on the strap embellishments to add a personal touch to the design.
A central component of the ensemble is a sunglasses homage to Hulk Hogan. Goldberg collaborated with Robbie Stinchcomb, formerly the head designer at Brooklyn-based art collective MSCHF, to produce a 3D-printed riff on Hogan’s iconic yellow Oakley lenses. Those sunglasses are designed to be removed just before the opening bell, preserving the reveal of the wearer’s face while maintaining the dramatic impact of the outfit. Goldberg described the Hogan influence as rooted in Hogan’s motorcycle culture, noting that the look channels vintage Harley-Davidson aesthetics and the early 1990s New World Order jackets that Hogan helped popularize.
Goldberg, who moved from Los Angeles to New York in 2025 and launched an independent label, First Draft, said the project has been a springboard for his career. The label has since teamed with the Portland Trail Blazers on a separate collection, underscoring Goldberg’s belief that New York’s garment district offers the “grind” and collaboration opportunities that differ from Los Angeles. “Moving here opened my eyes to the difference between New York and LA,” he said. “People here are ready to work. They respect the grind.” The project for Paul marks his first major fight outfit since relocating, and it comes after a period in which he led design and production for an LA-based brand that outfitted Paul for bouts against Mike Tyson and Mike Perry.
The journey to this Friday’s fight carried added weight: the outfit was initially conceived for a different opponent, and the decision to pivot to Joshua came with its own set of pressures and deadlines. Paul flew Goldberg and his design team to Georgia for an in-person presentation once the project was near completion. “I’m usually nervous going into these [meets],” Goldberg recalled, but Paul’s reaction erased any doubts. “He couldn’t believe it — he was ready to fight right then.”
The finished ensemble is more than a costume; it’s a narrative about risk, bravado, and the cross-pollination of fashion and sport. The jacket, shorts, boots, and sunglasses together create a dramatic look that underscores Paul’s evolving identity as a fighter and a cultural figure. The pieces reflect Hogan’s influence not just in silhouette, but in a broader ethos—pushing the boundaries of what a boxing outfit can represent on one of the world’s biggest stages.
The broader context for Friday’s bout is itself part of the fashion story: a Netflix audience, a fight that doubles as a visual spectacle, and a design project that has traveled from California to New York and finally to a Georgia presentation room. The result is a moment when sport, cinema, and streetwear meet under the bright arena lights, with a look that is as much a statement as it is a fight night accessory.
As the opening bell approaches, the eyes of fans will not only be on Joshua and Paul’s boxing skills but also on the living fashion narrative that Goldberg’s design helps tell—a story of a young designer who traded LA for New York to chase big-stage opportunities, and who now sees his work reach a global audience through one of boxing’s most talked-about exhibitions.
The outfit’s reveal, carefully staged to occur as Paul steps into the ring, is a reminder that the sport’s modern appeal increasingly hinges on storytelling through apparel as much as through punches. It’s a reminder that in contemporary boxing, fashion has become part of the bout’s history, and that the alliance between Paul and Goldberg is a signal of how cross-disciplinary collaborations are shaping culture and entertainment on the world’s biggest stages.