Kendrick Lamar left the 2026 Grammys with even more trophies under his belt, officially passing Jay-Z and the artist formerly known as Kanye West to become the most-decorated rapper in Recording Academy history, boasting 27 career wins.
Still, his major victories weren’t the only thing turning heads that night. When Kendrick stepped onstage to accept Best Rap Album for GNX, fans couldn’t help but notice that his right hand was wrapped in gauze.
Fans quickly started speculating that Kendrick might be signaling a new chapter in his career, a theory that gained even more traction thanks to his close friend and business partner, Dave Free. During the Grammys, the pgLang co-founder shared a zoomed-in photo of Kendrick’s bandaged fist on his Instagram Story.
To many, it felt like more than just a random injury and instead came across as a deliberate part of his overall look.
“Kendrick always drives the idea,” pgLang’s style director, Karizza Sanchez, said in a recent Vogue interview while discussing the look, which prominently highlighted Kendrick’s fist. “Sometimes it starts with a feeling he’s after, other times he sends a reference image, or a specific piece.”
The Grammy-winning rapper has long been hands-on with his styling choices. Stylist Dianne Garcia previously touched on his involvement during his 2016 Grammy performance, sharing similar thoughts with Billboard: “He was involved in the sense that he knew exactly what he wanted.”
In boxing, it’s standard practice for fighters to wrap their hands before putting on gloves to stabilize their fingers and joints, since their hands absorb blunt force during punches. According to an article from the National Library of Medicine, “a bandaged hand increases significantly the impact force of the punch. The force increases in relation to the thickness of the bandage.” Kendrick was spotted with his hand wrapped throughout the entire 2026 Grammys ceremony.
Another possible clue surfaced on Hitta J3’s Instagram Story. The artist, who appeared on the title track of Kendrick’s album GNX, posted a brief clip of undefeated four-weight champion Pernell Whitaker during a training session, captioning it “Message from the Boogeyman,” one of Kendrick’s known monikers.
He also took to his X account, writing, “More blood be spilling it’s just paint to Me!!!!” alongside a photo of Lamar wearing a Chanel suit with his fist wrapped ahead of the award show.
Fan accounts have been buzzing about the possibility of a new Kendrick era for a while now, and his gauze-wrapped fist has only strengthened their belief.
Kendrick has a history of weaving boxing imagery into his work. On his 2024 diss track “Euphoria,” he likened himself to undefeated boxer Terence Crawford while trading shots with Drake.
“He’s Terrence Thornton, I’m Terence Crawford, yeah, I’m whoopin’ feet,” he rapped, a line that nodded to both Crawford and Pusha T’s real name, Terrence Thornton, who also went head-to-head with Drake during their 2018 feud.
Beyond lyrics, Kendrick has long shown interest in boxing. Years ago, he was spotted inside a boxing gym throwing jabs in a video captured by TMZ.
Coincidentally, Drake has also flirted with boxing in the past. During a 2025 livestream with Adin Ross, the streamer hinted at Drake possibly stepping into the ring, which led fans—somewhat misguidedly—to assume it might be against Kendrick Lamar.
Drake quickly laughed it off, joking that if he ever fought anyone, it would be “behind closed garage doors.”
Kendrick, meanwhile, is known for subtle and calculated rollouts. Boxing became a recurring metaphor among fans and media when describing his lyrical battle with Drake in 2024, a clash that ultimately swung public opinion in Kendrick’s favor after his breakout hit “Not Like Us” dominated the charts. On the track, Kendrick rapped, “How many stocks do I really have in stock? One, two, three, four, five, plus five,” a line referencing how many diss records he had lined up for Drizzy if needed.
Whether Kung-Fu Kenny is wrapping his hands for another round remains to be seen.
