Four Forthcoming Running Shoes Worth Watching: Endorphin Elite 2, Adios 9, Metaspeed RW and Zoomfly 6

Introduction

Every so often the pipeline of forthcoming releases delivers a genuinely interesting stretch of months for runners. This crop of four upcoming shoes spans the full range from confirmed updates to near-total mysteries: a lighter Saucony superfoam racer, a stripped-back Adidas classic, an unexplained Asics silhouette on the World Athletics compliance list, and a Nike tempo shoe that may finally fix a long-running complaint.

Here is what is known, what is rumoured, and what to realistically expect from each one.

Saucony Endorphin Elite 2

The Endorphin Elite 2 has so far appeared only in a small limited batch, with a handful of runners managing to secure a pair. The headline change is the foam: rather than the Power Run HG used previously, Saucony is calling this a next-generation super foam, an entirely new formula, and the brand is not giving much away about its composition. Early impressions suggest it is very soft, noticeably softer than the more responsive and rebound-oriented Power Run HG.

The new version also appears slightly lighter than the original, by roughly 5 grams, which puts it somewhere in the 220 to 230 gram range for a UK size 11. That is comparable to shoes like the Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 3 or the Asics Metaspeed Sky Paris, though a few grams alone will only register to runners with exceptionally sensitive toes.

Another meaningful change is the addition of rubber on both sides of the heel. The original lacked rubber on the medial outsole, which caused it to wear down quickly, and the softer new foam likely needs that extra protection. There also appears to be a slotted or forked plate in play, though whether it carries over from the previous version or is new remains unclear.

Worth noting: the original Endorphin Elite is still on sale at £280, so expect the Elite 2 to sit in a similar premium bracket. No full release date has been confirmed yet.

Adidas Adios 9

The Adios lineup has a loyal following, and the Adios 9 looks set to lean into that heritage. Where the Adios 8 mixed Lightstrike and Lightstrike Pro in a sandwich midsole, the Adios 9 appears to go all-in on a full Lightstrike Pro unit underfoot, paired with full rubber coverage and a Continental rubber strip in the forefoot.

The midsole looks genuinely low stack this time, although some of that impression comes from the three stripes overlapping down onto the midsole. It will sit within the Adizero range’s stack hierarchy, likely lower than the Takumi Sen 10’s 32mm, and probably close to the 28mm of the Adios 8.

The most striking element beyond the foam may be the upper, which looks similar to the one on the Adizero Pro Evo 1, a shoe currently selling at £450. The Adios 9 is not expected anywhere near that price. The current model sits around £220, so a figure in that range, possibly slightly higher given the improved foam and lighter upper, seems reasonable.

With that outsole and this midsole, it could double as both a track-friendly option and a genuine uptempo trainer.

Asics Metaspeed RW

This is the strangest entry of the four. The Metaspeed RW exists, it is on the World Athletics shoe compliance list, and Asics is clearly testing it, but almost nothing else is confirmed. What could RW stand for? Speculation online includes race walking, which would make it a model for walking-race athletes, or perhaps a Running Warehouse exclusive, or even a worldwide reworking of the S4, the Asics shoe intended as a sub-4 marathon option for everyday runners.

What can be seen is a simple white and black colour palette, the FF Turbo Plus insignia on the side, and the same midsole geometry as the Metaspeed Edge Paris. The forefoot sits noticeably closer to the ground than the Edge and Sky models, and the plate may be more curved in this version. That low forefoot could point toward a race walking shoe designed to help athletes raise their cadence.

Alternatively, it could be a halfway point between a Metaspeed series shoe and something like the Superblast, or Asics repositioning the Magic Speed with a full stack of FF Turbo Plus. All of this is speculation for now, but it is one of the more intriguing silhouettes on the horizon.

Nike Zoomfly 6

The Zoomfly 6 has been rumoured for what feels like a very long time, but the details that have surfaced are genuinely encouraging. Reports suggest it will be 28 grams lighter than the Zoomfly 5, which is significant, because excess weight was the biggest complaint about that shoe. The Zoomfly 5 came in around 287 grams, so in the larger sizes this could bring the Zoomfly 6 under 300 grams, getting back toward the feel of the original Zoomfly.

The construction also looks promising: a top layer of ZoomX foam in the midsole with SR2 underneath, the foam from the Vomero 16, which was superbly soft. Add a full carbon plate and reasonable outsole rubber, and this could be a compelling uptempo package.

A release around October in the UK seems likely, though nothing is officially confirmed. If the weight reduction is real, this could put Nike back in contention against shoes like the Saucony Endorphin Speed 4 and the Adidas Boston 12, after several clunky, brick-like versions in a row.

Buying Advice

Each of these shoes targets a different runner. The Endorphin Elite 2 is for those wanting a premium, ultra-soft race day option and who are comfortable paying flagship money. The Adios 9 makes sense as a versatile uptempo trainer that can also race, at a more accessible price. The Metaspeed RW is one to watch rather than buy, since so little is confirmed. The Zoomfly 6 is worth waiting for if the reported weight saving holds, particularly for runners who found recent versions too heavy.

Since most of these are unreleased, the practical advice is patience: confirm stack heights, weights, and pricing before committing, especially where only partial information exists.

Conclusion

Four shoes, four very different stories: a confirmed evolution with a new super foam, a heritage racer going all-in on premium foam, a mysterious compliance-list enigma, and a Nike comeback attempt built around weight reduction. Keep an eye on release dates and pricing, because this could be one of the stronger stretches of running shoe launches in recent memory.