If you enjoyed last year's spartan UA Flow Velociti Wind 2 running shoe but thought what it really needs is a carbon plate, well, do we have news for you. The UA Flow Velociti Elite is coming to South Africa this Friday, bringing with it not only a full-length carbon-fibre plate but what appears to be strong new design elements.

Under Armour notes the Velocity Elite is best for long and mid-distance races, listing marathons as one the distances it can manage. And if you’re not quite convinced about the longer distance credibilty of the UA Flow Velociti Elite, we should perhaps remind you of Sharon Lokedi, who won the NYC Marathon on debut in the Velociti Elite.

It appears as if the Velocity Elite’s midsole has received a make-over, even though it's still a one-piece Flow foam midsole which also uniquely doubles as the outsole. It keeps the 8mm offset but to the eye it appears slightly thicker, which would not be a bad idea, with more cushioning helpful over longer distances.

If that’s the case, Under Armour managed to cut weight somewhere else, since the new shoe clocks in at 213 g, a decent 10% below the Wind 2’s 237g. Warp 2.0 tech makes an appearance on the uppers, which Under Armour believes optimises lockdown of the foot while maintaining decent breathability. There’s also reflective material added to help with visibility during low-light runs.

When we reviewed the Velociti Wind 2 last year, we said, “The UA Flow Velociti Wind 2 is a speedy shoe that is built with personal bests in mind and will serve those best who are fit enough to take advantage of the shoe’s relatively low weight.” With the new FLOW Velociti Elite, you can now add in the carbon plate which will make it even faster. However, unlike the Wind 2, the Elite comes without UA’s rather cool built-in chip to check things like cadence, foot strike, etc.

The UA Flow Velociti Elite is priced for those taking their running seriously, landing in stores and online from 18 May and going for a tad bit under R5k.