Wave Sky 9 vs Triumph 24

The Wave Sky 9 is Mizuno's plush, max-cushion daily trainer, a soft running shoe built to soak up easy miles and long runs rather than chase pace. With 44.3mm of stack under the heel and a moderate 6.2mm drop, it plants a deep, protective platform between your legs and the road, and that is exactly where it does its best work. At 295g it is a substantial shoe, so nobody will mistake it for a tempo tool. That heft is the trade-off for the comfort. If you want a neutral cushioned trainer to protect tired legs across a marathon build, or a plush recovery-day cruiser, it earns its place. If you already run in the Asics Gel Nimbus 28 or another pillowy daily trainer, the Wave Sky 9 sits squarely in that same comfort-first bracket, and we rate it as an honest, dependable option rather than a flashy one.

The Saucony Triumph 24 is the brand's plush, do-everything max-cushion running shoe, the one you reach for when comfort matters more than the clock. At 250g with a towering 43mm heel stack, it is genuinely light for how much foam sits underfoot, and that is the story here. The new IncrediLUX A-TPU midsole is the soft, springy kind of cushioning that soaks up long miles without feeling dead or mushy. This is a neutral daily training shoe built for easy runs, recovery days and marathon-distance base miles, not a firm tempo tool and not a racer. In a max-cushion field that includes the Nike Vomero 18 and the Asics Gel Nimbus 28, the Triumph 24 leans into a livelier, bouncier ride than most. We rate it as one of the most comfortable plush trainers you can buy, as long as you want cushioning first and speed second.