Puma Deviate Pure Nitro Review: A Fun Daily Trainer That Nearly Nails It

Introduction

The Puma Deviate Pure Nitro is a daily trainer that tries to do a lot with a very light package. For a UK 11 (US 12), it weighs just 249 g, about 8.8 oz, which makes it a genuinely nimble shoe on the foot. Puma appears to be pitching it as a competitor to the very successful Adidas Adizero Evo SL, at roughly the same price: £130 at UK retail. It was picked up discounted, landing closer to £110, which is one of the lowest amounts paid for a running shoe in quite a while.

The stack measures 41 mm in the heel and 33 mm in the forefoot on this size, an 8 mm drop, with roughly 3 mm more stack in both heel and forefoot than the sample size would give. If you wear a smaller size, expect a slightly different feel underfoot.

Who This Shoe Is For

This is a shoe for runners who want a light, bouncy daily trainer for everyday miles with room for the occasional burst at half marathon effort. It is probably not the right tool for hard 5K or 10K racing; there is simply too much shoe underfoot for that. As a marathon training shoe for someone building towards a race later in the year, though, it makes a lot of sense.

Main Strengths

The midsole uses a PEBA-based Nitro foam with a Shore A softness of 28, the same hardness figure as some older premium foams from several years back. It feels slightly denser than expected, and it is not quite the same as Lightstrike Pro, but it compresses well and returns to form reasonably quickly. The profile mimics the Deviate Nitro 4 and even echoes the Alphafly with its rim sections around the back of the shoe. There is no plate, yet the shoe still offers a decent amount of rigidity and feels surprisingly stable.

At steady paces it is a lot of fun. The big stack combined with the low weight means you can turn the legs over very easily, and it holds up well at paces approaching half marathon effort.

The outsole is the best part of the shoe. Puma Grip gets a wide spread across the contact area with a Shore A of about 55, a touch softer than the typical 60, and with decent rubber depth. It handled everything thrown at it, from rain to blazing sunshine, without complaint. Given how well the similar rubber on the Velocity Nitro 4 held up over time, excellent durability is a fair expectation here.

Things to Consider Before Buying

The upper is where the frustrations live. It is very minimal, with a small pull tab, minimal tongue padding, gusseting to stop the tongue sliding, a couple of reflective accents, and stretchy laces that run a tad long. The forefoot and heel are wider than the Deviate Nitro 4, and the heel is wider than the Evo SL too. That said, the shoe tapers quite aggressively, and while a half size down might be possible for some, it is a risky call for narrow-to-normal width feet.

Two specific issues stand out. First, the gap between the final two eyelets is too big, which contributed to some uncomfortable lace bite when using a runner’s knot, and the laces needed retightening a couple of times on longer runs. Second, the tongue is simply too short. Swapping in serrated laces might help, but the tongue length is harder to fix. The stock foam insole is also quite basic and does not add much cushioning. None of these are dealbreakers, but they are the snag points that keep this shoe short of top-tier status.

Buying Advice

On value, it is hard to complain. At the £130 retail price, and especially closer to £110 on discount, this shoe puts plenty of more expensive options to shame. It is cheaper than the Pegasus 42 and considerably more enjoyable to run in. The obvious alternative is the Adidas Evo SL, which can be found for a similar price; it feels a touch more nimble and up for it, but the Puma offers a bigger landing platform in the heel, which some runners may prefer. Long-term durability of the foam is still an open question, so bear that in mind if you rack up high mileage.

If you do buy, budget for a better insole and possibly some alternative laces. With those small upgrades, this becomes a very complete daily trainer for the money.

Conclusion

The Puma Deviate Pure Nitro is a light, fun, well-built daily trainer with outstanding grip and a genuinely likeable midsole. It falls just short of shoe-of-the-year territory because of the short tongue, fussy laces, and basic insole, and availability can be tricky in some regions. For everyday miles with a bit of speed mixed in, though, it is a strong option that is hard to fault on price.