It’s been a minute since we last reviewed new shoes from Puma. We are thrilled that a pair of one of their latest releases – the Puma Deviate NITRO Elite 2 (quite a mouthful) – has landed. Check out our thoughts!
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The Puma NITRO Elite 2 sort of showed up out of the blue for us. We were eagerly awaiting our first Puma review of the new year, after some amazing shoes over the past 12+months or so.
So when these showed up, with an expected launch date of late March 2023, we were sort of stunned to have them in our hands. But we are super glad we do now.
Looks:
I think that Puma has featured some of the most awesome colorways over the past few years – and this is not different. It’s not the fiery orange and red but we found the colorway a little similar to the Velocity Nitro 2 – a softer take on colors that are generally thought of as intense.
The neon-ish greens fade to a blue and then to purple from front to back. Add in a pouncing puma on each upper and this shoe definitely roars “fast”. Overall, we found the looks executed quite well.
Fit & Construction:
Upper:
The mono mesh upper is extremely light and breathable, and provides a decent enough structure and hold to the foot. That’s important in a shoe that needs to skew lighter to encourage speed.
Midsole:
As far as shoes that are classified as “Elite” – that word generally signals speed and, perhaps to a little lesser of a degree, cushion and bounce.
The former is definitely true here – they are designed to be fast. These have been tested and validated by Puma’s elite athletes and they want to shoot down your PR’s to new lows.
The latter (i.e. the super bounce) is not necessarily true here – and I’m happy about it. I found the nitro elite to have an unexpected, yet pleasant, ground feel. I put 20 miles in this within the first week and each ride got progressively better.
Yes, it’s a little stiff (thanks to a carbon PWR PLATE), but cushioning it between two NITRO ELITE (so many all-caps here) gives it a nice marriage of propulsion and comfort – the baby bear of a midsole groundfeel perhaps.
Outsole:
Puma’s outsole have been near top-notch for years now so it’s hard to say much about tit other than the PUMAGRIP really does well on the pavement. They provided grip in some less than ideal temperatures and conditions, and I expect it the hold up for a long time.
Overall:
If you like the Puma Deviate Nitro 2 as a neutral trainer, then this new Puma NITRO Elite 2 is sure to please you as a race day option. It’s light, breathable, and provides that snap that you want to go out and crush the competition (or your PR).
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
Puma Deviate NITRO Elite 2 $TBD
Specs:
- Weight: Men’s 7.44 oz / Women’s 6.2 oz
- Stack: 28mm forefoot / 36mm heel
- Drop: 8mm
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Thank you to Puma for providing us with test items. Please read our transparency page for info on how we do our reviews.
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