Four Upcoming Running Shoes, Reviewed: Yay or Nay?

Introduction

A fresh batch of upcoming and soon-to-be-released running shoes is worth a proper look, and four models in particular stand out this season: the Adidas Adizero Evo SL ATR, the Adizero Adios Pro 5, the unusual Adidas Equipment Adios Pro, and a sneak peek at the Puma Fast-R Nitro Elite 3.1. Some of these are clear improvements, one is a strange remix, and one leaves us genuinely unsure what Adidas and Puma are aiming for.

Here is how each one stacks up, with a straightforward yay or nay verdict for each.

Adidas Adizero Evo SL ATR: Yay

The Evo SL ATR is an all-terrain-flavored version of the standard Evo SL, bringing a new outsole and a slightly updated upper in both materials and design. A mud guard wraps around the front section of the shoe at the toe box, adding a little more structure to the upper and offering some protection for your toes.

The outsole features Continental rubber with a spread of lugs, which should make the shoe more capable through the winter months. The smoother rubber on the standard version worked fine in testing weather on concrete, gravel, and road, though it lacked some traction on smooth, wet surfaces, as most daily shoes do. The lugged outsole could extend the use case somewhat into lighter trails.

The laces have changed too, with serrated laces on the ATR version that let you dial in the lockdown a little more. The extra material in the upper should not change the feel of the shoe much in terms of weight, though the denser mesh may make it a touch warmer than the standard version, which sometimes required thicker socks in cooler weather.

Overall, this is a slightly more robust version of a daily road shoe rather than an all-out trail shoe, and that is exactly what makes it appealing. Verdict: yay.

Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 5: Yay

The Adios Pro 5 is drawing interest from runners considering it for their 2026 marathon efforts, and the emerging images point to some significant changes. The most notable is a plate visible across the whole of the midsole, ringing the inside edge of the shoe. It recalls the halo-style ring from the Adizero Evo Prime X, and it seems more likely to serve as stabilization around the edge of the shoe than as a full-length plate.

One genuinely puzzling detail sits on the outsole: there is no window showing the energy rods. That matters because rod cracking was a real problem with the Adios Pro 4, whose rods cracked frequently due to the softness of the foam, with many runners receiving replacement pairs from Adidas. Whether this filled-in section means the rods are gone, or a plate sits in the mid-to-forefoot instead, remains pure speculation. Something must provide stability in that section, especially if Adidas is using the newer, softer Lightstrike Pro formula from the Pro 4.

That softer ride is almost certainly here to stay. Super shoes across every brand are getting softer, and the Pro 4’s softer feel was not for everyone, particularly fans of the more responsive Pro 3. The rest of the shoe and the outsole look very close to the Pro 4, which performed well in terms of durability and traction. Verdict: yay.

Adidas Equipment Adios Pro: Nay

If you loved the Pro 3, this one might catch your eye, but for the wrong reasons. The Equipment Adios Pro appears to use leftover Pro 3 midsoles, essentially unchanged, with the energy rods carried over, and pairs them with an upper that has hints of the Takumi Sen 8, especially around the heel.

The striking element is the bulky, lifestyle-oriented upper, with reflective parts across the toe box and heel. That hints at an intended use case of leisure night running or casual seasonal outings rather than serious racing. Since fresh Pro 3 pairs are hard to find now, this might be the only way to get that familiar midsole and outsole combination, but the overall package is not what most runners need. Verdict: nay.

Puma Fast-R Nitro Elite 3.1: Undecided

The Fast-R Nitro Elite 3.1 from Puma looks very close to the existing version 3, with one obvious change: a squared-off heel instead of the pronounced rocker and bevel of the standard V3. That bevel seemed designed to make the shoe appear lower under World Athletics stack height rules, and squaring off the heel raises questions about whether extra stack can legally be added at the back. To block out the heel like this, Puma would likely have to lower it slightly at the rear.

Two versions are listed, an S and a W, which could mean standard and wide, or standard and women’s, though that is speculation. The upper looks practically identical to the current version, which makes the 3.1 moniker rather than a full 4 feel telling. Against claims from some review sites that the V3 was unstable, testing found it a genuinely stable super shoe under various foot strikes, and piling extra foam into the heel risks changing that character for change’s sake.

It may never surface widely at all; this could be a special version for Puma’s sponsored elite athletes. Given the open questions, we are abstaining from a yay or nay for now.

Buying Advice

If you want one shoe for mixed winter conditions, the Evo SL ATR is the safest bet of the four, adding light-trail capability to a proven daily trainer. Marathoners targeting 2026 should keep an eye on the Adios Pro 5, accepting that the softer Lightstrike Pro feel is the direction every top-end shoe is heading. The Equipment Adios Pro only makes sense if you specifically want the Pro 3 ride and cannot find a fresh pair. The Fast-R Nitro Elite 3.1 is best left on the wishlist until more details emerge.

Conclusion

Two yays, one nay, and one undecided. The Evo SL ATR and Adios Pro 5 look like sensible evolutions of shoes that already worked, the Equipment Adios Pro is a curious leftover-parts remix with limited appeal, and the Fast-R Nitro Elite 3.1 needs more information before a verdict is fair. If a new pair is on your list, matching the shoe to your actual running, not the hype, is still the best strategy.