The original Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo broke new ground for carbon plate super-shoes, being impossibly light and ludicrously expensive — it set you back $500 if you were lucky enough to get hold of one of the limited pairs put on sale.
It sparked an arms race among running shoe brands as rivals aimed to make their own hyper-light racing shoe, with models like the Asics Metaspeed Ray and Mizuno Hyperwarp Pure coming in under 5oz.
With the third model of the shoe, Adidas just changed the game again — the Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 weighs just 3.4oz/97g in a US size 9, making it the first racing shoe to dip under 3.5oz/100g.
A uniquely lightweight design
The lightweight design of the Pro Evo 3 is particularly amazing given that it has a high midsole stack height of 39mm at the heel and 36mm at the forefoot.
That midsole is made from a new version of Adidas’s Lightstrike Pro Evo foam, which is designed to be as springy as it is lightweight.
Key to the 30% drop in weight from the Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 2 is the new stiffening element in the midsole. Instead of using Adidas’s EnergyRods system, the Pro Evo 3 has a carbon-fibre infused frame that runs around the outside of the midsole, called ENERGYRIM.
This stabilizes the soft foam and adds extra propulsion to your stride to deliver the running economy benefits expected from the best carbon plate running shoes, while being lighter than a full plate or the rods Adidas has used in the past.
A lightweight upper and a minimal rubber outsole help to keep the weight down. Crucially, Adidas is using Continental rubber on the Pro Evo 3, rather than the rubber used on the Pro Evo 2, which I found failed to provide reliable grip in wet conditions.
The Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 will be available in limited quantities on April 23 before a wider release in the fall marathon season, and it sticks with the $500 price of its predecessors.
What’s it like to run in the Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3?
I wasn’t able to test the original Pro Evo, and found the Pro Evo 2 a little disappointing when I used it — it was undeniably fast, but didn’t feel like a big step up on other carbon racers that cost a lot less, and the grip was dangerously bad in wet conditions.
That didn’t stop me being incredibly excited to try the Pro Evo 3 at the launch of the shoe. My testing was limited to the treadmill for now, and given that I tried the shoe three days before a PR attempt at the London Marathon, I didn’t risk going all-out for long.
From the moment you hold the shoe it feels almost eerily light, even compared with the hyperlight Pro Evo 2, and the foam is a lot softer than on past Adidas racing shoes I’ve tested.
You sink deep into into the foam throughout the length of the shoe and then it springs back rapidly. It reminded me of the feel of the Asics Metaspeed Ray which is also very soft, light and springy, but the Pro Evo 3 is softer under the forefoot where there isn't a full plate thanks to the ENERGYRIM design.
My short stint in the shoe left me itching to do more running in it, and to give it a go at a race as soon as possible. We’ll have a full review of the Adidas Pro Evo 3 up as soon as I’m able to put its through its paces properly on the roads.
