Article by Jeremy Marie and Derek Li
Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 3 (230€/230$)
Pros:
Excellent cushion to weight ratio, huge weight drop vs v2: Jeremy
Comfortable, airy yet supportive upper: Jeremy/Derek
Springy foam, with lots of rebound: Jeremy/Derek
Works for a variety of paces: Jeremy/Derek
Quite natural feeling, not overly directed: Jeremy/Derek
Still has of the best outsole grips and durability:Jeremy/Derek
Lower price point than competition:Jeremy/Derek
Cons:
slight lack of stability at the heel: Jeremy
Most comparable shoes
Salomon SLab Phantasm 2
Nike Vaporfly Next% 2
Hoka Rocket X 2
Stats
Spec Weight: men's 6.84oz / 194g (US9/EU42)
Sample Weight: men’s 7.65oz / 217g US10.5/EU44
Prior Version Weight: 9.91 oz / 281g (US10.5/EU44)
Stack Height: men’s 40 mm heel / 32 mm forefoot ( 8mm drop)
Prior Version Stack Height: 38 mm heel / 30 mm forefoot ( 8mm drop)
Platform Width: 104 forefoot /52 midfoot /79 heel
Measurements won’t be as accurate here as the main external edge is exposed midsole, and the edges are curved at the heel and midfoot. Forefoot number is fine.
Available now at our partner Top4 Running Europe HERE (some colors on sale)
First Impressions, Fit and Upper
Jeremy: Clearly the first impression you get of the Deviate Nitro Elite 3 in hand is how light the shoe is, despite the massive slab of foam. And indeed PUMA managed to shave an astonishing 2.3oz/67g per shoe in my US 10.5 by using a new aliphatic TPU,while gaining 4 mm of stack front and rear, and sticking to the same 8mm drop.
The UltraWeave upper, despite feeling a bit rough to the touch, is supple and pliable, and is actually softer on the inside. This mono-mesh upper is slightly stretchy in all-directions, allowing for a nice foot-conforming fit. Having used them on some hot runs, I can attest that it’s also breathable and airy.
PUMA sticks to its PWRTAPE overlays around the midfoot, both on the medial and internal side, adding some retention to this area.
Fit around the midfoot feels almost relaxed at first, which is quite unexpected for the high performance shoe the DNE3 is. I’ve found it to be very accommodating without any foothold issue. It promises a lot of comfort for longer runs.
The non-gusseted tongue is very moderately padded but does a perfect job of annihilating any pressure from the slightly stretchy laces.
Despite its « free » no gusset strap design, it stays perfectly in place thanks to the clever design touch PUMA uses.
Instead of using a single « lace hole » in the middle, there are two on the sides of the tongue, balancing lace tension. A simple and effective design.
The collar is just slightly padded, with kind of a narrow « pillow » at its top which falls just under the ankle. The padding is ever so slightly thicker at the heel, and gain some height measuring a bit over 1cm. There’s no heel counter per se, the lower parts being just a tad more rigid - but still stays flexible.
This whole rear is doubled with a suede-like fabric, which helps a bit in heel retention.
This a very curated design and it worked perfectly for my foot shape: I did not encounter any heel slippage, even during hill repeats.
There are also two PWRTAPE inlays here, starting from the base of the foot and going backwards towards the base of the malleolus, structuring the rear part of the shoe.
This whole construction gives a feeling of comfort that would feel at home in a training shoe, the toebox topping this feeling with adequate room for toe splay.
A note on sizes: PUMA shoes sizing does not translate as usual between US and EU sizing: stick to your US size in other brands for Puma and it’ll be OK (it translates to ½ size less in EU)
Derek: I think the Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 3s got a lot of hype and anticipation after the US marathon Olympic trials when a number of their Puma-sponsored female marathoners had breakthrough races, going 1 and 3 in the race and beat out a lot of the pre-race favorites. We have had to wait a really long time to try these shoes!
When they finally became available to the public I went out and ordered a pair from Puma HK (as the Singapore distributor hadn’t brought them in yet) and I have to say the hype is well deserved.
I put in a lot of miles in the Deviate Nitro Elite 1 and the Fast-R 1 and both had their strengths and weaknesses. For me, the DNE1’s biggest issue was bottoming out for my running style (forefoot lateral landing) and while the foam was plenty energetic, I felt like they needed to bring the up stack more. I gave DNE2 a miss as it seemed like largely an upper update with no meaningful changes to the stack numbers. Enter the Deviate Nitro Elite 3 and it is a completely different beast.
Jeremy has already gone into great detail with the upper description so I won’t rehash that.
I’ll just say that the fit is marginally on the longer side now as compared to DNE1 which ran slightly short, and Fast-R1 which was true to size for me. Incidentally, I also tried Fast-R2 in the store and it also ran marginally long. If you have Fast-R2, I would say the fit is about the same with the DNE3. As is, I think the DNE3 works splendidly in terms of fit and lockdown with medium thickness socks. Zero chance of black toes in a marathon race, but I do have a little over a thumb’s space in front of the toes.
I cannot emphasize enough how good the lockdown is in this shoe. It’s easily among the top 3 best fitting race shoes I’ve ever tried, the other two being ASICS Metaspeed Sky OG and the Nike Alphafly 1. It is easy to dial in the lace tension and get great lockdown without having to overly tighten the laces and with zero heel movement.
I love the very conventional upper construct and heel design. It just shows you don’t need to be overly clever with the upper to get an effective and light upper. Overall shoe volume is very diplomatic as well, with not a lot of arch structure at midfoot, so the shoe should work well for a wide variety of foot shapes.
At the time of this writing, I have already gone ahead and bought another pair of these shoes in a half size down to see if I can get a lighter set-up with thin race socks for that leave no-stone-unturned A race. It doesn’t hurt that this second pair comes in an all-white colorway (I’ve only ever seen the white on the Puma HK website but I am sure a wider release is imminent).
Midsole & Platform
Jeremy: PUMA has changed the NItro Elite foam and we now have a new aliphatic TPU midsole foam, promising more energy return than the previous version, as well as leading to big weight savings despite adding 4mm of foam height.
Sandwiched inside is the PWRPLATE carbon plate, bottom loaded. The advantage of this lower-positioned plate is that the foot does not feel its rigidity, as it sinks into the generous volume of foam before loading the plate, similar in positioning to the Vaporfly Next % and ASICS Metaspeed Edge. Interestingly, the lower layer of foam feels a bit firmer, which is especially noticed at the forefoot. I think this firmer foam participates in the big propulsive feeling that the DNE3 gives during the stride.
The geometry does not have an exaggerated rocker, with just a slight upward curve at the toes level. This contributes to the quite natural feeling the shoe has in the super shoes realm.
PUMA also promises a durability gain with this foam, which is difficult to assess after 60km. I can only attest that it does not need any break-in period, and that the foam does not show any wrinkles which can be seen early in some PEBA based midsoles.
Derek: There is a lot of cushioning and energy in this midsole set-up. That’s it in a nutshell.
Now there are a whole bunch of race shoes sitting at the 40mm/32mm stack level right now, so almost everyone is right up against that limit. Off the top of my head, the Nike Vaporfly 3, Unpause Halley Light, and 361deg Future Fast all sit at this stack height (by my personal measurements). The Adidas Adios Pro 3 sits at 39.5/31.5 if memory serves correctly, and I can tell you none of them feel similar to one another, except maybe Unpause Halley Light feeling quite close to VF3.
The Puma DNE3 midsole, especially at the forefoot when you are driving through, feels the softest and more energetic of the bunch, and there is definitely no bottoming out. The sandwiched carbon plate does a very good job at creating that rocker effect through toe-off, but at the same time, the plate is not overly rigid and feels a bit more flexible than say the plate in the VF3. This makes the shoe very versatile and you can even really feel comfortable using it at recovery paces between workouts.
Over the long run, the vibration dampening is the best among the shoes with a measured 40mm heel stack, and you can really tell the difference at the 20 mile mark, against say a VF3 or an Adios Pro 3.
Now, the softness does come with some trade-offs, and I will say the medial-lateral stability of the shoe is on the lower side, especially at forefoot where there is more foam between your foot and the plate. At the heel, things are a bit better as the plate sits closer to the foot so there is a bit more stability there. Additionally, there are no raised midsole sidewalls or wide platform width design to add any stability. I actually like this as it allows the foot to land and roll through in a much more natural way. I think if you need a little more guidance, the Fast-R2 would be a better option for you as the plate feels a lot stiffer and the heel is a bit firmer in that shoe.
Outsole
Jeremy: When you have such a tremendous compound as the PUMA Grip in hand (on foot), you just stick to it and put it everywhere you can.
We’ve already sung the wonders of this rubber, and it still applies in the DNE3.
Its implementation here shows the preferred foot strike the shoe is designed for: two little patches under the heel area, and a large covering of the front third, with a longitudinal central cutout to help flexibility and reduce weight.
It’s designed with wavy thin lateral grooves which acts both for flexibility and water evacuation on wet asphalt.
No need to detail much about the performance of this outsole, it has shown plenty of durability in the past, and looks like new after 60km, while still offering best in class grip.
Derek: I have about 100km in my DNE3s and while there has been some wear off the forefoot rubber, there is still plenty of coverage there, so outsole durability seems to be good. You can see that the black Puma logo upfront is mostly gone on my pair.
Puma outsoles are also notoriously good in terms of grip and it has not disappointed in the DNE3. You are not going to have problems with wet roads in this shoe. Incidentally, my last long run in the shoes was 22 miles with 13 miles on crushed gravel, and while there is some brown staining on the exposed midsoles of the shoes, there is no sign of damage to the skin of the midsole; so I am quite impressed with the compound. A similar run done in the AF3 several weeks back yielded some minor abrasions to the exposed ZoomX underneath.
Ride, Conclusions and Recommendations
Jeremy: The ride of the DNE3 is one of the most energetic I’ve encountered, yet while still feeling very natural along the stride.
It almost feels traditional actually, when you rule out the big energetic propulsion that the foam and plate combination give the shoe. The very subtle rocker geometry and the not overly bouncy or soft foam is clearly at play in this feeling.
Let’s get straight to the point here: the Deviate Nitro Elite 3 is, for me, one of the best super shoe on the market right now.
The fit is comfortable yet secure, with a very gentle foot hold in an accommodating upper and wth a highly pronounced energy return of the foam.
By « best » I also mean one that can accommodate a variety of runners, as the Deviate Nitro Elite 3 is not overly directive and works very well both in short bursts, reps as well as for tempo runs. Despite the slightest feeling of instability at the heel, it still bests most of the super shoes on the stability front.
Add also in best in class grip, apparent durability and a lower price point as the competition, and we clearly got a winner with the Deviate Nitro Elite 3.
Jeremy’s Score: 9.68 / 10
Ride (50%): 9.8 Fit (30%): 9.5 Value (15%): 9.7 Style (5%):9.5
Smiles Fun Score! 😊😊😊😊😊
Derek: I agree with Jeremy here. The ride is very natural and energetic, reminding me a lot of those first miles in the Nike VF4% OG Ice Blue, but even more cushioned and springy.
Even though the shoe has an 8mm drop, I think mid-forefoot strikers will still appreciate the energetic platform the forefoot provides, and it feels noticeably more cushioned than what you would expect from a 32mm forefoot stack.
The foam is soft and deforms very nicely when you land in a supinated manner to roll your foot through to the forefoot. The plate is not overly stiff, and works well over a wide range of paces, making a good option for slower runners as well.
The main knock might be in terms of stability. The soft foam makes the shoe a relatively less stable shoe than say Fast R2. I've done a bunch of workouts in the shoe from 10k-FM pace and long runs up to 22 miles s, and they have performed really well, in terms of cushioning and performance assistance. I think the Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 3 is easily the best super shoe of the year for me.
Derek’s Score: 9.75 / 10
Ride (50%): 9.6 Fit (30%): 10 Value (15%): 10 Style (5%):9
Some people might want to size down by half a size
I personally would have preferred a 6mm drop for the shoe, but that’s really the only blemish on the shoe
Smiles Fun Score! 😊😊😊😊😊
9 Comparisons
Index to all RTR reviews: HERE
Nike Vaporfly Next% 2
Jeremy: Maybe the closest feeling shoe I have, as I have the same « natural » feeling running in the VF2 despite this being achieved in a different way.
The DNE3 feels more traditional, but with maybe more spring at toe off. It’s also more comfortable and stable than the VF2. It also feels more cushioned, and maybe more suited to longer efforts. The VF2 still has a special place for me, as I still find it to be the most efficient super shoe for running fast for me, but that might just be a consequence of the mileage I put in them vs the DNE3 so far..
Nike Vaporfly 3 RTR Review
Derek: Both shoes fit about the same, in that both are marginally long and in a race situation, I would ideally size down by half a size for both shoes. The Puma fits me better in terms of getting the heel to lock down. The Puma also feels more plush and springy underfoot, and I seem to get better oomph off the ground in the forefoot with it as well. Overall, I find the Puma to be a more enjoyable and efficient shoe.
Salomon S-Lab Phantasm 2 RTR Review
Jeremy: I said in the conclusion that the DNE3 is amongst the best super shoes right now…and the Phantasm 2 sits in the same place. I still need to put one more miles on it, but the first runs were excellent: comfort, stability, energy return…with a feeling of the foam close to the A-TPU Nitro Elite foam. The Contagrip matches the PumaGrip wonders and, from past experiences, is at least as durable.
I find the Salomon more suited to longer runs, whereas the Puma takes the win for shorter efforts.
On Cloudboom Echo3 RTR Review
Jeremy: The CBE3 might not be the latest On racing shoe, but it still sits in a niche for shorter efforts, let’s say up to half marathon, where its relative firmness brings a different flavor than most other super shoes. The consequence is that it might feel a bit too firm for some, and it’s less versatile than the DNE3. It’s also pricier, less durable…and feels a bit more dated now.
Derek: I wear US9.5 in the Cloudboom Echo 3 and would race in US9 in the DNE3. There is no question the CBE3 is one of the most aggressively rockered racers out there, and if you like a firmer more snappy ride, it’s a great racer with great mechanical assistance. However, I think for most people, a softer, more forgiving shoe like the Puma DNE3 would be the better option.
ASICS Metaspeed Edge Paris (RTR Review)
Derek: I wear US9.5 in the Edge Paris and would race in US9 in the DNE3. The Edge Paris is definitely more rockered but firmer underfoot compared to the DNE3. I think the Puma is more dynamic and cushioned, but perhaps a slightly slower feeling shoe. Puma seems to have better outsole performance. Fit-wise, the ASICS upper volume is a little too high for me and doesn’t seem to lock down the foot as well as the Puma. Overall, I think it’s quite close. I probably would go for the ASICS for shorter races and the Puma for longer races.
Saucony Endorphin Pro 4 (RTR Review)
Derek: I wear US9.5 in the EP4 and would race in US9 in the DNE3. The EP4 geometry doesn’t work so well for me. The whole shoe feels kind of overly flat, with an overly soft heel, making it difficult to transition quickly in this shoe. Just on this alone, the Puma is a better option for me across all distances.
Mizuno Wave Rebellion Pro 2 (RTR Review)
Derek: I wear US9.5 in the WRP2 and would race in US9 in the DNE3. Do note that the WRP2 fits slightly longer than v1. I find the rocker of the WRP2 to be more effective, but it does seem to be more exacting in needing good biomechanics to correctly engage the shoe at all times. Once your form breaks down, the shoe doesn’t seem to perform as well and can even feel a bit harsh. In this respect, the DNE3 is a better overall shoe for most people for the marathon. I think if I were in very good PB shape, I would probably go for the WRP2 as a marathon shoe. But if I think I might tire in the late stages of the race, then the Puma is the safer option.
Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 1 (RTR Review)
Derek: I wear US9.5 in DNE1 and would race DNE3 in US9.0. The DNE3 is a higher volume shoe and fits more comfortably for longer runs and races, and more importantly, the underfoot cushioning is a lot better, with less ground feel and more underfoot bounce. The rocker also feels more prominent than before. Overall the DNE3 is a huge improvement.
Puma Fast R 1 (RTR Review)
Derek: I wear US9.5 in Fast R1 and would race DNE3 in US9.0. The Fast R1 is a more aggressive shoe with a lower to the ground feel. My main gripe was with the harshness of the heel in that shoe. The forefoot outsole also wore down quite quickly over 200ish KM. DNE3 seems to have a more durable outsole, and is a lot more forgiving and comfortable to wear, even though the rocker is not as aggressive. Overall I like the DNE3 better.
Adidas Adios Pro 3 (RTR Review)
Derek: I would size down by half a size for both Adios Pro 3 and the Deviate Nitro Elite 3. The DNE3 is significantly softer and has a more dynamic ride. Crucially, the position of the rocker sits closer to midfoot in the DNE3 and this makes the shoe a lot easier to roll through. The Puma outsole is also going to be more durable than what’s on the AP3. I think unless you need a more stable ride, there’s really no reason to go with Adios Pro 3 over the DNE3
Tester Profiles
Derek is in his 40’s and trains 70-80 miles per week at 7 to 8 minute pace in mostly tropical conditions in Singapore. He has a 2:39 marathon PR from the 2022 Zurich Marathon.
1 comment:
Thx for the review! Any idea how this shoe compares to the Hoka Rocket X 2 or the Diadora Garage Carbon?
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