Another day, another carbon plate race shoe. This time in the form of the eagerly anticipated Asics Metaracer Tokyo.
I’m not going to lie, I get pretty excited when I get to try a new carbon plate shoe. There’s a sense of the unknown about the whole thing – like you’re about to experience something incredible.
Read more: The best running shoes of 2020
To be excited about a shoe just because it has a carbon plate is nonsense though. The plate doesn’t automatically make a shoe perform in a certain way, it’s a just a piece in the puzzle. Not all carbon plate shoes are designed to feel like the Vaporfly.
The Metaracer is a very good example of that. In fact it feels more like a conventional lightweight racer than a springy Vaporfly or Endorphin Pro. Is that a bad thing? Not really, unless you wanted a Vaporfly experience – then you’re going to be very dissapointed.
The Metaracer is a fast shoe. It has significantly less cushioning than most, if not all the current carbon plate shoes and feels a lot harder. If you like racing shoes with minimal cushioning then it may well be a great option.
At £180, I feel like there are a lot more shoes out there that deliver a similar experience for significantly less (maybe the New Balance Rebel or the Hoka Adidas SL20). However, if you’re a fan of the Asics style and fit, it may be exactly what you’re looking for.
For a full review on the Asics Metaracer Tokyo, have a watch of the multi-tester review here. Any questions or comments, leave us a message.
