Baltimore-based baselayer giants Under Armour are set to release their lightest football boots yet in the form of the Under Armour Blur Carbon III.
It’s fair to say that the Under Armour Blur series has had a fairly underwhelming player uptake – despite Under Armour’s growing roster of players, almost all opt for the Hydrastrike II or 10K Force Pro II.
Whilst we actually like the Blur series and it’s focus on lateral stability and player comfort, we can certainly see why many professionals would shy away from it’s unusual shape, FG-only soleplate and 243g weight – a little on the heavy side for a ‘speed’ football boot.
But since Under Armour have taken the technical supplier deal at Tottenham Hotspur, we’ve noticed a them taking their football boots a lot more seriously – and that is squarely reflected in their most serious football boots yet; the Under Armour Blur Carbon III.
At 177g, the Blur Carbon III is comfortably amongst the lightest boots on the market, sitting alongside the Mercurial Vapor VIII, evoSPEED 1 and Mizuno Morelia Neo in at a fraction behind the 165g benchmark of the adiZero and 158g of the Pele Sports Trinity.
How have Under Armour achieved such a drastic weight drop for the third incarnation of the Blur? As always, it’s in the material choice.
Starting with the upper, UA employ microfibreELITE for a super-thin, super flexible feel and fit. Under Armour have also gotten rid of a traditional tongue, instead opting for a wrap-around design similar to the Predator_X.
As you could probably have guessed by the name, the Under Armour Blur Carbon III also packs Carbon Fibre into it’s construction. Forming the core of the new X-Spine soleplate, the Carbon Fibre supports the heel and midfoot for superior support and power retention when striking and making sharp lateral movements.
Whereas many boots have used the space age material in the past to provide elastic return under the toes, the Blur Carbon III seems to use it more like the Umbro Stealth range did, leaving the forefoot as high-density TPU for flexibility and comfort.
Under Armour have also opted for a more traditional stud pattern, in comparison to the ‘outrigger’ studs of the last two Blur Pro’s. Five conical studs support the toes for quick ground penetration, whilst the heel – and interestingly, the outside of the foot – boast more oval-shaped studs for superior support,
As you’d expect from Under Armour, the UA Blur Carbon III somehow packs all the comforts of the last two boots into it’s 177g weight point, with 4D moulded foam creating a perfect footbed, and a Micro G antibacterial later to reduce odor and improve hygiene.
With it’s super-low ground clearance, side-offset lacing, impressive weight and hefty list of features, the UA Blur Carbon III could prove to be a strong favourite – particularly in this Red / Silver / Black colourway.
But don’t start reaching for your wallet just yet, Under Armour won’t be releasing these cleats until January, when they’ll retail at €200 – making a £160 UK Pricetag likely.
Are these UA’s best boots yet? Let us know in the comments!
Carbon fibre means nothing here when you can achieve similar things with just the usual injection molded polymers themselves…..
Well said Darrly. Carbon fibre looks interesting and cool but in my opinion the sprintframe material has much better performance characteristics.
Actually, the midfoot section of the adizero is not nearly as rigid as the Blur, and carbon fiber is used because of how stiff and lightweight it is.
agree, exotic materials just boost the price more, not necessarily improving performance. look what happened to the boot that last used carbon fiber…
Absolute gash.
i suppose the carbon fiber is lighter though? because somehow these boots became VERY light, i suppose also because of the microfiber upper. either way, they seem like a nice enough alternative to the big names, and definitely the best speed boot UA has made. and aslo, much better color choice, the others were way too loud.
CF – not really. But it is stiff – but nowadays we can manipulate polymers to do the same thing. Most brands put a piece of CF in and use it as a buzzword.
why do companies producing planes and supercars use carbon fibre then, i dont think they use it as a buzzword. They use it for its tensile strength and low weight. Im sure these companies know about these polymers you talk about, they dont use them for a reason
But they are after super stiffness and other high value properties. It’s overkill in these applications. Actually if you look at F1 they have replaced some CF stuff now with tuned polymers that are 3D printed 😉
They put the carbon in the places where you need stiffness (mid to back), and the front part where you need flex is actually made of flexible plastic. You need to look at the overall design and not focus on just one material included in it.
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also… why don’t they lessen the studs? the trinity uses the perfect number and placement. that is why nike’s trying it out with neymar’s new blackouts.
Yes – we know this!!!
i have one of these and its the best shoe i ever had and i have had a lot of shoes
i love these shoes
i have 21 different football shoes and these are the best