Gaviota 6 vs Hurricane 26

The Gaviota 6 is Hoka's most cushioned stability running shoe, a max-cushion daily trainer built for runners who overpronate and want to be held up without feeling boxed in. There is no medial post here. Instead the support comes from a wide, stable base and Hoka's J-Frame geometry, so the correction feels gentle rather than corrective. At 283g with a 36mm heel and a 7.3mm drop, it sits at the plush, protective end of the market rather than the fast end. This is a shoe for logging comfortable miles, recovery days and long steady efforts, especially if your legs ask for support as fatigue sets in. We rate it as one of the easier stability trainers to just put on and run in. If you want a firmer, more traditional guided ride, the Asics Gel Kayano 32 is the more structured pick. The Gaviota trades a little of that guidance for comfort, and for most easy-day runners that is a good deal.

Saucony took weight out of the Hurricane this year and added some bounce, and reviewers noticed. On our spec sheet the 26 is lighter than the Hurricane 25 with an almost identical stack and a low 5.9mm drop, and most reviews say it rides livelier too. The 25 could feel a bit flat underfoot. This one keeps getting called bouncy, which you don't often hear about a max-stability shoe. It's a daily training shoe for overpronators who want plenty of cushioning for easy miles and marathon training. The support comes from a very wide base and a raised edge on the inside of the foot rather than a hard post, and The Run Testers found neutral runners could get on with it as well. What you give up is agility: the platform is huge, it isn't built for speed, and a couple of reviews felt it's a little less stable than the 25. RTINGS was the least enthusiastic source we read, mainly because it's no shoe for quick running. RRP is £170, £10 above the 25's, so check the price table before you buy.