Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 5 review: The marathon supershoe for the rest of us

When Sebastian Sawe strode into the record books, becoming the first person to run an official sub-2-hour marathon in London earlier this year, all eyes turned to what was on his feet. There, we saw an impossibly lightweight pair of sub-100g Adidas carbon supershoes, the Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3.

Runners everywhere asked themselves the same question: do we all need Sawe’s super-minimal speedsters to chase our own PB goals?

I spoke to the Adidas Pro Evo 3 designers, and they were quite clear. The Pro Evo 3 shoe was designed specifically for the fastest runners, those clocking sub-3-hour marathons and, like Sawe, much, much faster.

I raced the Cape Town Marathon in the Adios Pro Evo 3, squeaking under three hours, and while it’s a light, fast weapon of a running shoe, I can confirm the stripped-back racer is fun but definitely not for everyone. Not least because of the £450/$500 price tag and the limited availability.

However, Adidas seemed pretty sure they would pretty quickly repackage some of that record-breaking, efficiency-boosting tech into shoes better suited to those of us taking ever so slightly longer than Sawe to conquer the 42km.

That shoe landed last week – the Adidas Adios Pro 5. And I just got to lace it up to race the Berlin Marathon. The perfect test to find out if it translates the Pro Evo 3’s punchiness into a more accessible little sibling. And where this sits in the super shoe standings.

Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 5 review

What’s new with the Adidas Adios Pro 5?

The Adidas Adios Pro 5 is a complete overhaul from the Adios Pro 4. It looks like a cross between the Pro Evo 3, the hugely popular fast trainer, the EVO SL, and the Pro 4 and features a completely new midsole setup.

It sticks with the highly rockered wedge of a new-formula Lightstrike Pro foam but adds an extra 2mm under the forefoot, shooting for a softer, more responsive and more energetic ride.

Adidas replaced the carbon EnergyRods that sat under the metatarsals on the Pro 4 with a horseshoe-style carbon EnergyRim running around the edge of the shoe that mimics the tech used in the Pro Evo 3. That sits you directly on top of the new bed of Lightstrike Pro.

The Pro 4 had a big, weight-saving midsole cutaway that exposed those rods. That’s gone, replaced by a flatter complete midsole that makes for a much more consistent and smooth transition, particularly at the slower paces.

Up top you’ve got new uppers deploying the same lightweight woven material. But with lots of added pinhole perforations to boost breathability. There’s an updated version of the Lightlock 2.0 uppers with internal support bands to help secure your foot. You’re still getting short, thin, minimal tongues which are stitched in on both sides to help them stay put, rather than gusseted.

Adidas also swapped the regular laces for sawtooth laces that don’t wriggle loose. That’s a welcome improvement.

Another thing I like. The Pro 5 now has some reinforcement in the toe box that helps provide some extra clearance across the top of the toes. Though the forefoot still tapers quite sharply for a narrow toe box.

The heel package has been changed too, sticking with race-style, weight-saving, minimal internal pads with just a hint of cushion at the base of the Achilles. Adidas says they also now use a material coating that helps those heel pads grip better when things get wet or sweaty, to help avoid movement and rubbing.

The outsole sticks with a very similar outsole combination of Lighttraxion and a Continental rubber pad under the main strike point in the forefoot.

A few tiny but very important details to note here: The outsole looks recessed into the midsole in places and thinner overall. Presumably, more weight savings, but that could help avoid catching the edges of the outsole rubber pads, reducing the risk of those lifting off.

Then, on the lateral side, there’s also an exposed section of the Lightstrike Pro foam. Adidas says it’s added protection only where you need it to keep things light. So there’s no Lighttraxion rubber on this edge. For some runners, that’s led to scuffing and damage.

How’s the fit?

Fit and sizing are areas where Adidas race shoes don’t always deliver. In the last-gen Adidas Adios Pro 4, I struggled with the length in my usual Adidas size.

The end of the toe box caught my (neatly clipped) toenails on runs over 2 hours or so. The sharp tapered toe box also made everything a little more cramped.

The Adidas Adios Pro 5 seems to have fixed the toenail woes, thanks to those reinforcements in the toe box. But the fit remains snug. If I’m being kind, I’d call it a race fit, but the tapered forefoot leaves little wiggle room, and I think I’d recommend going half a size up in the Adios Pro 5.

But then there’s the heel package. The Pro Evo 3 cut my heels in Cape Town; the Adios Pro 5 did the same on my solo marathon test, from around mile three. For Berlin I chose thicker socks and plastered up, and that extra protection prevented a repeat of the damage, though I could still feel those heel collars more than I would like.

This is something I think Adidas could definitely improve. I’d take a couple more grams for a little bit more guaranteed comfort back there. 
I don't really want to have to plaster up my heels every time, or go into a race worrying about what might happen.

I didn't have any toenail lifting, as I suffered with the Pro 4. That little reinforcement of the toe box seems to have fixed that issue. Though. I think you still might want to consider going half a size up to give yourself good clearance and account for that tapered, narrower fit toe box.

The marathon test(s)

Two weeks prior to Berlin, I laced up the Adios Pro 5 for a 3:45 solo marathon around the streets of London, with two blocks of sub-3 marathon pace in the middle. The Pro 5 felt good moving fast when I hit my target marathon pace.

I lined up for the Berlin Marathon, feeling in good form, a bit off my 2:50 PB fitness, but still targeting a sub-3-hour marathon. Something I clocked with the assistance of the top-tier Adidas Pro Evo 3 back in June at the Cape Town Marathon.

Ride experience

On the Berlin streets, I went out a little hot, hitting between 6:30 and 6:50 min/miles – the latter being my target pace. When I was moving well on fresh legs with a good mid-to-forefoot strike, there was a really nice impetus to the shoes, good energy coming back from that Lightstrike Pro midsole.

I'd call it smooth and efficient, though maybe not as aggressive and punchy in the toe-off as the Adios Pro 4, which I find has a less compressive foam that's much more immediate in responding when you're engaging it.

But the Pro 5s feel much smoother and more natural. I found a more consistent sensation underfoot, much more uniform and planted across all paces, from when I was feeling really fresh and running well, to the last bit where I was really struggling, landing very heavy and suffering.

They might not be quite as bouncy or propulsive as, say, an Asics Metaspeed Edge, not as punchy as the Puma Fast-R 3. You don't get the same stiffness and aggression; they're not a bounding shoe. But I don't think the Pro 5 lacks energy. If Adidas was aiming for a shoe with a more democratic, accessible setup to appeal to a wider range of abilities, I think it delivers.

It gave back what I invested when I was hitting pace, with a nice efficiency and buttery smooth, controlled energy. And it certainly looked after me well from a protection perspective when I dropped to a minute slower than marathon pace and was heavy and ragged deep into the race, likely because you're now landing on the foam rather than the rods or a plate.

What stood out most was the boosted comfort and reliability versus the Pro 4, and the extra support, protection and restraint versus the Pro Evo 3, when the inevitable ragged form hit.

I had virtually no foot fatigue under the forefoot, and though the Pro 5 wasn't perhaps assisting me much at the slower paces, it didn't leave me exposed the way some carbon racers can.

Durability concerns

On durability, a lot has been shared on social media, with some runners finding the outsole cutting up where there’s that exposed bit of foam.

Post-Berlin, I’ve now run 100km+ in the Adios Pro 5, including two full marathons and a bit of training, and I’m not seeing any signs of that wear.

Interestingly, while in Berlin, we saw an early prototype of the Pro 5 that had a full covering, and I think Adidas may well respond quickly and tweak the outsole to have more coverage to address those concerns.

Verdict

The Adios Pro 5 has a lot of merit. It's a really good, consistent performer with a smooth, efficient energy that returns when you’re moving well but still protects when you’re not.

It’s probably not the top carbon shoe in terms of all-out punchiness and all-out speed, though. The Asics Metaspeed Edge Tokyo has a bit more bounce, snap and bite. The Puma Fast-R3 brings a bit more stiffness and propulsion.

However, you're sacrificing a bit of that aggression for a more accommodating ride, which I was very happy to lean into when my race hit the skids yesterday. This setup could well suit a wider range of runners with different race goals.

Also consider

Adidas Adios Pro 5 vs the Adios Pro 4

The Adidas Pro 5 is a notable improvement over the Adidas Pro 4. It’s lighter, more stable and more consistent, and if, like me, you found the Pro 4 midsole tended to roll you out when you landed further back, or felt a bit blocky on the roads and had faster-returning foam under the forefoot, this new setup fixes that.

The Pro 5 is less aggressive, and if you were a big fan of the Pro 4s, the changes here add up to quite a significant change to the ride. Everything is smoother, softer, more protective, and I think better suited to a wider range of running gaits. If the Pro 4 was a bit forefoot-biased, the Pro 5 is much more accommodating for different landings.

Adidas Pro 5 vs the Adidas Pro Evo 3

The Adidas Adios Pro 5 isn’t as light, as fast or as all-out punchy as the Pro Evo 3. But Adidas' top-tier concept shoe really caters for runners smashing the very fastest marathon times. I just about held my own in it for a sub-3 in Cape Town, and it’s a fun ride with that impossibly high-energy Lightstrike Pro Evo foam.

I would recommend the Pro 5 over the Pro Evo 3 for most runners. The slightly higher drop is a bit more protective on the calves. There’s more support from the uppers, and the Pro 5’s Lightstrike Pro midsole offers a more consistent, reliable and protective ride. The Pro 5 is also significantly cheaper.