5 Different Types of Carbon-Plated Racing Shoes
The race day shoe market is more saturated than ever, and with each brand now offering multiple options—featuring different foam compounds, underfoot geometries, and carbon fiber plate orientations. Here, we’ll break down each brands' most popular race day models, highlighting market leaders like the Saucony Endorphin Elite, aggressive designs like the ASICS Metaspeed Sky Paris, soft and squishy rides like the Adidas Adios Pro 4, underwhelming foams as found in the New Balance SC Elite V4, and perfectly dialed-in performers like the Nike Alphafly 3.
Welcome to Carbon County, land of TPEE and home of the plates. While you're here, we thought it would be fun to show you around. Just don't stay too long in the Valley of Mid or you might never get out.
The Carbon Heritage District
In the Carbon Heritage District reside the beloved icons of past years, and the one-hit wonders who were rushed off-stage before their time was up (looking at you, Mizuno). These are the shoes that are still getting play in 2025 because they offer something that doesn’t exist in the rest of the market. For the Cielo X1 and Adios Pro 3, it’s stability and bounce in packages that work well for hobby joggers of all sizes and paces. For the Endorphin Elite, it’s the firm, planted bounce that’s confident and controlled for sub-3 attempts. And for the Mizuno Wave Rebellion Pro 2, it’s the bouncy toe-off and aggressive rocker. While the market has moved on to $300 marshmallows, these legends will always have a home in Carbon County.
- Saucony Endorphin Elite
- Hoka Cielo X1
- Adidas Adios Pro 3
- Mizuno Wave Rebellion Pro 2
Aggressive Alley
In the Aggressive Alley are the speed racing weapons. These are the shoes with the big rockers and narrow heels, designed for speed above all else. The Asics Metaspeed Sky Paris is our favorite of the bunch. It has a wide carbon fiber plate placed up close to the forefoot which is the perfect launch pad for hitting high-end speed. It’s also one of the lightest shoes on the market. The Hoka Cielo X1 2.0 is a good choice for forefoot runners who want a soft ride, but we found the comfort-oriented tuning of the foam didn’t match the aggressive geometry. Puma’s Fast-R 2 is firm and heavy—but the upcoming version 3 looks to be a massive update with potentially game-changing efficiency gains.
- ASICS Metaspeed Sky Paris
- Puma Fast-R 2
- Hoka Cielo X1 2.0
Hoka Cielo X1 2.0
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The Marshmallow Region
In the Southwestern corner of Carbon County lies the Marshmallow Region, a newly developed borough where foam conventions are thrown out the window. Everyone and their mom is going down to the Marshmallow Region and huffing supercritical TPU and TPEE, and race shoes are getting softer than ever in 2025. While Nike started the trend with the original ZoomX race foam in 2017, the category has shifted even further into pillowy softness in the last year. If you like squishy snd don’t drive a lot of power, the Endorphin Elite 2 is a fun ride. The Eliot Racer is the most comfortable of the bunch—a great choice for long run cruises and marathons where the goal is finishing strong. Our favorite is the Mizuno Wave Rebellion Pro 3, where the benefit of the bounce and aggressive toe-off far outweigh any mushiness from the softer compound.
- Adidas Adios Pro 4
- Saucony Endorphin Elite 2
- Mizuno Wave Rebellion Pro 3
- Tracksmith Eliot Racer
Adidas Adios Pro 4
The Goldilocks Zone
The Goldilocks Zone is where all the best race shoes live—the established, Range Rover–driving titans like the Alphafly, the quietly great carbon racers working their way toward retirement like the Hoka Rocket X2 and Saucony Endorhin Pro 4, the glitzy newcomers like the On Cloudboom Strike and the no-nonsense bangers like the Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 3. These are the tried and true race shoes that are top of the game. We recommend the Alphafly 3 and Deviate Nitro Elite 3 for fast but cushioned performance, the Rocket X2 for high-end speeds and the Endorphin Pro 4 and Cloudboom Strike for protective softness.
- Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 3
- Nike Alphafly 3
- On Cloudboom Strike
- Hoka Rocket X2
- Saucony Endorphin Pro 4
Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 3
The Valley of Mid
When a race shoe isn’t Supwell Certified, chances are you’ll find it hiding out in the Valley of Mid, the home of mediocre carbon racers. From the Metaspeed Edge Paris, which doesn’t provide the same magic as its sibling, the Sky Paris, to the Brooks Hyperion Elite 4 PB that fails to match shoes that precede it, to the SC Elite v4, which resembles more of a super trainer than a true marathon racer, the shoes of the Valley of Mid don’t quite stack up to the bangers found in the Goldilocks Zone. The jury is still out on the Vaporfly 4.
- ASICS Metaspeed Edge Paris
- Brooks Hyperion Elite 4 PB
- Nike Vaporfly 4
- New Balance SC Elite v4
Nike Vaporfly Next% 4
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