The shirt is a cotton-polyester blend that is, to the contrary, not a downgrade. It is designed to have the comfort of cotton and the wicking capabilities of a tech shirt. Many races are using this type of shirt as their race shirt with good success. Other comments received concerning runner shirts is that they don’t like the feel of tech shirts and want to go back to a cotton shirt. The choice of shirt is an attempt to reach a happy medium. But experience has proven that it’s impossible to please everyone. If you decide to purchase the shirt and you’re not happy with it, I will gladly refund your money.