By: Sports Headline

Boxing is one of the physically demanding sports there is, where literally everything is at stake. As in any sport, safety comes first. While some pieces of traditional protective equipment have kept athletes covered for many decades, not long ago, serious and disturbing deficiencies related to the existing equipment in the industry were brought into sharp light. Enter Ozhan Akcakaya, the founder of Hit N Move, who foresaw an opportunity to make it much safer for athletes within the sport through a revolutionary design in headgear. The Hit N Move Precision Model headgear is more than a simple compliment; it’s an innovation with the power to change one’s look toward the sport at its very core, with a deep motivation for taking care of the protection and performance of the fighters inside the ring.

Innovation Needed

For Ozhan Akcakaya, boxing is more personal than professional. As a licensed amateur boxer, he has been through most of the struggles from heavy-duty workouts to black eyes and bloody noses. His love for boxing began after moving to the U.S. in 2012, but his career in the orthopedic industry gave him a unique perspective on the importance of protective gear. Integrating his professional background with his interest in the sport, Akcakaya realized an acute problem: for boxers, himself included, traditional headgear was badly limiting visibility and was seriously impeding movement because of its bulkiness.

Many boxers, including Akcakaya, would avoid headgear in sparring to preserve quickness and clarity of peripheral vision. But sparing without protection highly raises a boxer’s chances of getting injured. This was a dilemma. A need to create something better – a type of headgear which would protect boxers without holding them back – finally emerged. Thus, a journey to create Hit N Move Precision Model headgear began.

The Hidden Risks of Traditional Headgear

Traditional thinking about providing boxers with maximum protection involved requiring large, heavily padded headgear. However, more recent studies have demonstrated that heavier headgear actually increases the risk of brain injury. The extra weight on a boxer’s head imparts more force upon impact, increasing the chance of concussion and long-term damage. Furthermore, one of these styles limits the fighter’s ability to visualize the incoming punches, further increasing the chances of him getting hit.

Understanding these risks, Ozhan knew that simply adding more padding was not an answer. What the boxers needed was superior protection headgear without compromising the ability to move freely and clearly see their opponents. His mission was clear: create headgear that would take weight off boxers’ shoulders-literal and figurative-by offering lightweight protection without sacrificing safety.

Photo Courtesy: Sports Headline

Developing the Precision Model Headgear

Ozhan didn’t cut any corners in the design process. In fact, it took more than 20 iterations before the final Precision Model headgear was perfected. This was quite a long process, entailing tests of various materials and designs, each time refining the headgear to meet the demands for protection and performance. With his innovative mindset and input from professional boxing coaches, such as Bruce Babashan, he came up with a slimmer, lighter model that would change the way fighters protect themselves in the ring.

The secret behind the Precision Model headgear is within its multi-layered micro padding system, strategically positioned to protect the chin, cheeks, temples, and back of the head-all the vulnerable places in a fight. In contrast to a single layer, this can significantly diffuse an impact to minimize injury while maintaining better movement for a fighter.

Photo Courtesy: Sports Headline

Partnering with Virginia Tech for Scientific Validation

Ozhan’s focus on safety did not stop at the drawing board. To ensure the Precision Model headgear truly provided superior protection, he collaborated with Virginia Tech-one of the leading sports equipment testers in the country. For years, Virginia Tech had been subjecting American football helmets to a barrage of grueling tests, but Ozhan’s collaboration helped pioneer the very first standardized tests for boxing headgear.

The results were groundbreaking. Weighing 5 ounces lighter than the finest Japanese model, Precision Model headgear performed as good, if not superior, in each protection category. Researchers at Virginia Tech confirmed that, particularly when wearing headgear as state-of-the-art as the Precision Model, one faces much less risk of concussions than without any on whatsoever.

The Consequences for Boxing Safety

Hit N Move’s Precision Model headgear represents the paradigm shift in the boxing industry: no more would the fighter be forced to choose between protection and performance. This headgear, sleek in design, along with an advanced padding system, allows them to naturally move around and have quick reactions while peripherally maintaining their vision even though they are still protected from blows that, unfortunately, are part of this sport.

Boxers and coaches alike have raved about the headgear. In blind tests conducted in gyms like the Upton Boxing facility, where the world champion Gervonta Davis trains, boxers couldn’t believe how light and comfortable the headgear felt while being very well protected.

Photo Courtesy: Sports Headline

A Safer Tomorrow for Boxers

Ozhan Akcakaya has come up with something that is, even now, making positive vibes in the boxing community, simply out of pure innovation and dedication to fighter safety. The Precision Model headgear is not a step but a leap into making the sport of boxing much safer, and that is from Hit N Move. Since this is a sport that keeps growing daily, safety for the athletes should always come first. Boxers can now have protective gear because of Ozhan’s vision, which lets them perform to their best while protecting their health in the long term.

This headgear is no fashion accessory, but an endorsement to Ozhan for the care of his sport and hence the next generation into the ring with confidence and a safety check.

Published by: Nelly Chavez