What’s the story?
Elevation Fight Team have now collaborated with Calfornia-based company Neuroslam to help prevent head injuries for MMA fighters. In September, Elevation began working with Neuroslam to track potential concussions, head injuries and their possible side-effects. They've been working on the project ever since.
In case you didn’t know...
Elevation Fight Team is one of the biggest teams in MMA, with fighters such as Former Bantamweight Champion TJ Dillashaw and veteran Neil Magny as a part of their team. Neil Magny is very much involved in this collaboration with NeuroSlam.
The heart of the matter
Magny speaking on this new project said that during the early days if you took a shot in the gym, you either took a few weeks off or just ignored it and carried on. Magny further added that every athlete who wants to begin a career in MMA needs to understand that injuries are a part and parcel that come along with the sport.
If I go my entire career without getting a concussion, that would be great. But at the end of the day, it's something that's associated with the sport. It's almost like a work-related hazard.
What’s next?
According to NeuroSlam, there is a theory that after someone receives a hard punch to the head, protein levels in the body increases, the scientists test fighters for that protein through their saliva, which is known as ‘S100’ amongst scientists and ‘biomarker’ amongst doctors.
Elevation fighters will be tested regularly for this protein after their training sessions. The goal will be to see how much the protein increases after shots to the head, compared to a gruelling workout, and if the protein has any link to any traumatic injuries.
Sportskeeda’s take
This is a great initiative by Elevation and NeuroSlam. In a sport plagued by injuries to the head which in turn shortens careers, this programme will help reduce problems caused due to concussions.
The video below shows a profile on Elevation Fight Team’s Neil Magny:
The video below shows a profile on Elevation Fight Team’s TJ Dillashaw:
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