Mizuno Wave Rebellion Pro Review: The best new carbon racing shoe of 2023?

The Mizuno Wave Rebellion Pro is the most exciting carbon shoe we’ve tested in a while, offering something a little different in a racing shoe market where it’s increasingly difficult to stand out owing to the amount of great options available. Run Tester Nick has been testing the Wave Rebellion Pro out with a range of fast training runs and a 5K race, here’s his verdict on the shoe.
JUMP STRAIGHT IN:
00:00​​​​ - Intro
00:13 - Design & Key Stats
02:36 - How’s The Fit?
03:05 - The Run Test
08:41 - Verdict & Alternatives
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[@richshelley2922]

Great review I’m in the “loved alpha 1 hated alpha 2 camp” this sounds bang on 🙌

[@nialltoh7338]

Thanks Nick, great review with great enthusiasm!

[@TheRunTesters]

Thanks Niall!

[@grandeisern]

Cool review

[@grantormerod]

i bought the alphaflys march 22 and they didnt quite fit due to the high arch, but after a week-ish my feet adapted and i have loved them so much i was unsure whether to get the alphafly 2. But, at nearly half the price im glad that you have compared these to the alphaflys and now looking forward to get out in the mizuno's. Il be using mine for long runs training for 70.3's triathlons. Thanks for the review

[@massi888]

Thank you Nick. it is always nice to listen to your reviews. I ordered the shoes, Mizuno should thank you :)

[@TheRunTesters]

Thanks Massimo, hope you like them!

[@dbo4506]

Soft bouncy and feel fast. But he warned…. They’re insanely unstable. I’ve never had issues with stability but I couldn’t use these. So just keep an eye on the stability

[@bartekzielinski1645]

Same here : - )

[@massi888]

@@dbo4506 thank you for the warning, i tried them today on a flat surface and i get what you mean. Especially when walking they are a bit unstable, when running at faster pace i found them nice and the grip is really good

[@chevydad83]

More or less stable than the New Balance RCV2?

[@KOYKOYROYKOY1000]

Thanks for the very nice review! Can you please compare it to the prime x? Which is more fun to run , which is more stable and which one of the 2 do you believe is more efficient for marathon racing? Thank you.

[@AndriyGrynevych]

Happy Shrovetide Week, ride a lot. Nice paint job, but the stress of running really loud on the Wave Rebellion Pro can't be ignored.

[@everythings7150]

Nick's is true heel striker

[@MrAldiyar]

Nick, thanks for the full review! Have you heard anything about the discrepancies in tooling between the special colorway vs the regular white and orange one which is also available now? I've seen recommendations of going a 1/2 size up from your normal size if one wants to buy the black/white color way of the shoes. I am all set on planning to buy this shoe, but I am afraid to f-up the sizing. I am a UK8.5 in all of my shoes including the Vaporfly %2's

[@TheRunTesters]

Sorry I’m not sure about the sizing on the more normal colours. Hopefully someone who has tried them can comment! The Mizuno is tighter than the Vaporfly in the same size, but it works well for me in my normal size

[@annegenevieves]

I bought these recently and would not recommend. The shoes are marked as a US women's size 8, but they are tiny - likely a size 5 or smaller. They are really really small and not at all accurately sized.

[@jozefberes250]

Hi Nick, thanks for good review. I would like to know if you have information about this colourway if it will be limited or wide production like others?

[@russellbutt1553]

It's a limited unisex colourway. Main colours are white/orange (men) or white/pink (women).

[@SharonsHere]

Question - how would you compare the toe box to the MetaSpeed Sky+? Is the Mizuno more narrow or about the same? I have found that the MetaSpeed Sky+ has a very wide toe box. Thank you!

[@runhanrunnl]

Added on the wishlist for the 100k later this year.

[@kristinnpetursson4954]

Where should I purchase my new running shoes?

[@pauljabbour6250]

Hi Nick, thank you for another great video. Just a bit off topic though I was wondering if you or your viewers knew of a good pair of glasses that I can use with prescription to run with that doesn’t slide down your face from all the sweat and running. Thank you

[@TheRunTesters]

Thanks! I have some Oakley Plazma ones that stay in place, but my main solution is to use these grippers (amzn.eu/d/eIS05IT) on my glasses. It is not a cool look, but it does the job haha

[@hawkseyy]

Oakley will do prescription glasses in certain frames provided that your script isn’t too high. I actually use the brand Bolle for mine.

[@pauljabbour6250]

Thank you so much.

[@mirenganatra5376]

Hii I want to know what to do while running in winter

[@canakman2638]

I ordered Mizuno rebellion pro and it hasn't arrived yet. Do you think Rebellion pro is as good as aplhafly and adios 3 pro? I can cancel my order and buy nike or adidas. what are your experiences?

[@rwdenis1]

Love this review! So balanced with sage perspective. I have 70 active pairs of running shoes and bought the Rebellion Pro out of curiosity and have not been disappointed. I'm a pronator and inexplicably felt more balanced in this shoe than the Asic Edge or Adidas Prime X and even the Endorphin Pro 2. It's exciting to wear. Can't wait for my next race. Thanks so much for taking the time to balance your review with your various perspectives. This is exactly why a video review can be more powerful than a written review. You hear the intonations and catch some of the spontaneous tangents. Thanks again!

[@rwdenis1]

Also for @koykoyroykoy1000, I have the Prime X and ran Berlin 2022 and Brooklyn 2022 in the Prime X and loved the shoe but had to warn people alongside me that I was going wide in every turn as I literally thought that I was going to topple over. This shoe seems to lock you into a forward motion (like you're falling, but falling forward - sort of going downhill - but all the time!). I haven't run long in the Rebellion Pro, but the PrimeX still made my legs feel like they had spring after a PB in Berlin. Weird but made me happy. Hoping that the Rebellion Pro will do the same (whilst being legal).

[@jdidsbury]

Hi Nick, did you find it noisy at all? I was disappointed with the noise from the Pro 3 and always get wound up hearing Alphafly's in races. 😁 Thanks.

[@TheRunTesters]

Quieter than the Alphafly for sure! I didn’t notice much noise in them, certainly in the race they were drowned out by other shoes haha

[@jdidsbury]

@@TheRunTesters Thanks Nick. 🙂

[@seanbolger7371]

Is the unusual colourway just to grab attention??, great review by the way

[@TheRunTesters]

Thanks! I saw somewhere it’s inspired by Japanese calligraphy. Standing out doesn’t hurt though, something all super shoes aim to do on start lines!

[@hawkseyy]

@@TheRunTesters the colourway is called Kakizome or something

[@ciluburkhardt5763]

Hi Nick. I would like to order these shoes, my question is, if it suits my size 44 (10)? I own Nike Next 2% and it suits my size 44 (10). Thanks

[@TheRunTesters]

I am same size in both this and Vaporfly 2, but Mizuno is tighter in forefoot. If you find the Vaporfly tight in that size could maybe go half up in the Mizuno

[@ciluburkhardt5763]

@@TheRunTesters thank you very much

[@danscape]

How is the noise while running in these? I tried the Wave Rebellion and found they were super noisey slappey sounding on the pavements.

[@TheRunTesters]

Not too bad at all, much quieter than the Rebellion as the Pro is so rockered

[@IQSimpanse]

The Real Rocker design, remind me of rocker chair

[@Feanaro5503]

Would this be better than the Takumi Sen 8 for running 5Ks and 10Ks?

[@TheRunTesters]

Pretty close for me, Takumi definitely nimbler on a twisty course though, and much cheaper

[@sptnk87]

Hey guys, question! Do you use Altra shoes?

[@TheRunTesters]

We have some Altra reviews on the channel yep, but we haven’t tested them as much as other brands yet

[@mthuthuzelimsobantu5546]

Does it feel tigher than the Deviate Nitro Elite 2 in the forefoot?

[@TheRunTesters]

Yes a tad tighter than Elite 2

[@smellysam]

Will probably get these in sales at 100€ in a year…

[@bh4560]

I wish the alphafly 1 would be continued..its sad if not. Like really sad. 😒

[@joannamartignoni]

Interested in these because I have been getting horrible arch pain in the Alphafly and so hopefully I can use the Rebellion Pro as my marathon shoe instead.

[@greganikin7003]

May be you should work on your arch stability and getting it fixed a d then start worrying about the shoes? Remember - it’s not about the shoes, it’s about your muscles strength and balance.

[@joannamartignoni]

@@greganikin7003 I don’t want to be one of ‘those people’ but I really think it is about the shoes in this case. I’ve run in every version of the Vaporfly as well as in Adidas, Saucony and NB plated shoes and haven’t had the issues that I have in the Alphafly so I think they just don’t suit my feet. It’s not a muscular pain it’s as though there’s something in the arch of the shoe that’s poking into my foot and it seems to be worse on the left - perhaps I got a dud pair?

[@greganikin7003]

@@joannamartignoni probably… i once experienced the same problem with adidas shoes back in 2018. Five this one a shot may be it’s going to help you

[@garethmorgan2383]

Hi Jo , I experienced blisters in the arch of my foot when I was about 9 miles into my 1st couple of runs in the alpha v1’s due deep mess of the arch on the shoe . I added an insole to level it out a bit and it solved the problem. My go to shoe for the marathon distance,hope this helps 👍

[@joannamartignoni]

@@garethmorgan2383 thanks so much - that's interesting! I'll give that a try.

[@annegenevieves]

I bought these recently and would not recommend. The shoes are marked as a US women's size 8, but they are tiny - likely a size 5 or smaller. They have very pronounced, stiff, rough seams on the upper insides of the shoe, which I could only imagine would rub on your foot and be very uncomfortable, especially if you wrote them for long distances. They also have a little tag on the tongue for some reason. I would have given them a chance, despite all this, but I could not physically get the shoes on my feet due to how tiny they are. On top of that, the "return" button on the website's order history page doesn't work, and if you go to their website's return information, it says you have to call a phone number to start a return, and they make it pretty clear that they don't accept returns easily.

[@ChrisC-bk6nd]

Hi Nick, cheers for the review. I've ordered a pair and really hope they are true to size as there were no 8 1/2s left. I'd like to see you test them against the Endorphin Elite, Rocket X 2, and Vaporfly 3 please (when they are out at the start of March). If you could specifically compare the softness of the midsole that would be awesome 👍👍

[@TheRunTesters]

Fingers crossed on size! I know I am narrow for my size, but hopefully it’s OK. Will get to those comparisons for sure, lot of testing to come with Hoka and Nike launches

[@steveh8758]

Nick you said the alphafly 1 was your favourite carbon plated running just wondering what it’s now ? Also any idea if and when they are going to release that colour way ? Looks really nice 👌

[@TheRunTesters]

Honestly these days I go back and forth between a few, debating it with myself constantly ahead of our upcoming rotations vid. Vaporfly prob the easiest answer for all distances, but there are several now I’d be perfectly happy with as my only carbon shoe! Not sure on this colour launch, I thought I saw March somewhere but now can’t find that anywhere…

[@steveh8758]

@@TheRunTesters what about the vapourfly 3 😁 if you have that yet ? You Probably can’t say if you do haha I probably go for the vaporfly 2 but I’m starting to lean towards the alphafly for the longer events Unfortunately i can’t get the mizuno wave rebellion pro I’m a 12 and looks like they only go up to 11 Would definitely have brought it just for colour way

[@TheRunTesters]

Haha don’t have the 3 yet, hopefully soon! Alphafly 2 is great, another top contender for my fave. Shame about Mizuno sizing!

[@hawkseyy]

Hey! This colourway is actually released in Australia, so yeah it’s coming worldwide!

[@FirstLast-bi8xi]

@@steveh8758 sizes go all the way up to 14 in Australia, not sure where you are looking....

[@Leporkchop34]

This or the SC elite v3? you can only have one

[@TheRunTesters]

I’d go for the Mizuno myself. NB also v good tho!

[@AndriyGrynevych]

@@TheRunTesters Excuse me, cry me a river "canyon" deeper?

[@dbo4506]

I have the sc elite 3. Out the box I loved them but they lose their magic quicker then any shoe I’ve owned. I loved the feel of the mizuno. But did an analysis of my foot strike in them and they were crazy unstable. But they do feel great. I pronate a little but I’ve also never needed to get stability shoes. If you’re not worried about stability, it’s easy mizuno 100%. If you’re concerned about stability, I’d be looking at the endorphin pro 3. They’re very stable and they are better then my sc elite 3 in absolutely every way.

[@Leporkchop34]

@@dbo4506 For the marathon? This is what I'm working on.

[@gpersonaltrainer]

Tested today at the running track, I'm now uploading the video. This is a very strange pair of super shoes. Even though rhe Nike Alphafly have a gradient of weirdness, the Wave Rebellion Pro are futhermore strange (and, regrettably, slow). I was expecting to be Coil-Man (yes, I'm that old) and instead I was a slow coach. Even a pair of new daily trainers (aka Saucony Ride) can go faster than these shoes.

[@TimGrose]

Speaking of who shoes these are designed for, I was very surprised to see Mizuno saying on their product page "For elite level speed runners aiming to run a full marathon in less than 2.5 hours." So good to see you are OK there Nick but kind of rules out all bar about 200 male runners and about 10 women in the UK. Or do they mean 2 hours 50 min rather than 2 and a half hours. Even so that is very elitist. Anyway can't see it anywhere bigger than a UK 11 so am definitely out!

[@TheRunTesters]

I didn’t clock that! Often some daft things in marketing, I don’t really see how or why that would be the case. Dafter still no bigger sizes though

[@JoutarouKuujou1]

1st

[@JasperPuttu]

That seems like a fresh pair of alphaflies v1 🫣

[@TheRunTesters]

Haha, very fresh, never get a chance to use them with all the testing!