The Diadora Gara Carbon 2: The Speed is Worth the Splurge

We review a lot of shoes from a lot of shoe companies. There remain only a handful that we haven’t been able to test out—and we can knock another off the list with our first review from Diadora.

Diadora is one of those brands that has been making serious waves in the running shoe world over the past few years. They’ve gone from “Oh hey, cute—this soccer company wants to make running shoes” to “Wow, this is really solid stuff” in what feels like no time at all. That’s saying a lot. But let’s see how the $300 Diadora Gara Carbon 2 holds up.

Looks

I’ll just say it: I’m mostly obsessed with the aesthetics of the Gara Carbon 2. I tend to lean toward brighter running shoes, but honestly, I’m not that hard to please.

The soft baby blue with royal and orange highlights is flashy without being over-the-top, simple without being bland. It looks fast but still accessible. Big win here.

Specs

• Stack height: 40mm (heel) / 35mm (forefoot)
• Drop: 5mm
• Weight: 7.4oz (Men’s 9)

Upper

The upper is a Matryx fabric construction. I’ve run in Matryx uppers before, but only in trail shoes, so I can’t recall seeing it in a road shoe. If this is the first—bravo, Diadora.

Diadora’s Matryx mesh is reinforced with carbon fibers, making it light, durable, and surprisingly breathable. You can literally put your hand inside the shoe and see it from the outside, but it still keeps your foot locked in place. Super shoes aren’t usually concerned with stability, and the Gara Carbon 2 isn’t pretending to be a stability shoe, but the inherent strength of this upper was a great design choice.

The tongue is forked and gusseted. The tongue is pretty unnoticeable when running (which is exactly what you want). It’s moderately cushioned—more than some other lightweight speed shoes—and pairs well with the laces, which I’ve seen on a few other fast models and really like. The heel is also surprisingly well-padded for such a light shoe. Overall, the upper is a big win.

Midsole

As mentioned, this is a 100% carbon-plated shoe. But if you hadn’t told me that upfront, I might not have guessed. That’s because the midsole isn’t just stiff and snappy—it’s also well-cushioned.

The midsole features Diadora’s new Anima PBX, a supercritical Pebax foam. Diadora claims it increases rebound by 55% and reduces weight by 40%. I can’t personally verify those numbers, but I can tell you that the ride is both light and bouncy.

The Anima PBX foam is soft but pairs nicely with the plate, striking a balance between cushion and propulsion. Sometimes carbon-plated shoes feel too stiff, but these didn’t. The aggressive curvature of the plate is probably the key reason why I was able to handle top-end speeds so well (see first impressions below!). This shoe is designed for pure propulsion—meaning that at slower to moderate paces, it can feel a little weird.

Outsole

Diadora calls their outsole material Duratech 5000, which honestly sounds like a sci-fi movie robot from the ’90s. But hey, as a Millennial, it’s right in my wheelhouse.

The outsole is grippy, and I’m impressed by the amount of forefoot coverage. It makes sense—super shoes cater to faster paces, and faster paces often mean forefoot striking. Even with all this grip, the shoe stays light.

That said, there are plenty of cutouts exposing the midsole, especially toward the midfoot and heel. There’s some strategic rubber placement at the heel, but not much else back there. So far, though? Zero complaints.

First Impressions

I’ll admit it: I don’t usually run in super shoes. It’s not that I’m against them, but as I inch past 40, my running goals are more about staying healthy, enjoying the miles, and maintaining speed in a sustainable way. I’m not chasing PRs like I used to, and I’ve found that training too aggressively can lead me to burnout (or worse—injuries).

But when the Diadora Gara Carbon 2 showed up, I knew I had to test it. A $300 shoe screams “I’m here to go fast,” and what better way to test that than some interval sprints?

I’ve been a Peloton member since the pandemic, and while I prefer running outside, their treadmill classes are great when I need a structured workout (or when Oregon weather does what Oregon weather does). One of my favorite classes is Thunder 45, a brutal 45-minute workout that’s half running and half strength training. It’s basically aggressive hill runs and sprint sessions – broken up only by weighted HIIT training off the treadmill – with no breaks in between.

Now, I knew the Gara Carbon 2 wouldn’t be ideal for the lifting portion (duh), but I wanted to see how it handled speedwork. And honestly? I was blown away.

During the warm-up at an easy 8:30/mile pace, the shoe felt fine but not particularly special. But then the real test began—eight minutes of one-minute Tabata sprints. First rep at 6:00/mile pace? I literally looked at the treadmill to make sure I hadn’t accidentally slowed it down. It felt that easy.

By the second sprint, I knew—this shoe wants to go fast. I cranked it up to 5:43 pace, and while it was obviously harder, I didn’t feel that usual strain. Then, for the final set—five minutes of sprints at a 3% incline—I pushed to 5:27 pace… and held on. I’ve hit 11+ mph before in random chunks, but I’ve never felt this efficient doing it.

I have sense taken this out into the “real world” and would say the same thing holds true. It’s not going to be a daily trainer – but man if you wanna push pace – look out!

Final Thoughts

It’s been a while since a shoe made me say “Dang!” out loud mid-run, but the Gara Carbon 2 did exactly that.

This is a serious speed shoe. If you’re looking for a daily trainer or a cushy recovery shoe, look elsewhere. But if you’re hunting for a fast-day weapon or a race-day rocket, this shoe delivers—especially for those who like a carbon-plated shoe with some cushion.

At $300, it’s an investment. And, it even tops the price range of some of the stalwarts in this category. But I think it holds up well and is right in the mix. If you’re serious about speed, this one deserves a spot in your rotation.