Zoom Mamba 6 vs evoSPEED Distance Nitro Elite+ 4

The Zoom Mamba 6 is Nike's distance and steeplechase spike, a running shoe built for the longer end of the track: 3000m steeple, 5000m and 10000m. Where a pure middle-distance spike like the Air Zoom Victory 2 is all aggression, the Mamba trades a little of that snap for a shoe you can hold form in when the laps stack up. The spike plate is firm and locks you onto your forefoot, so every stride turns over quickly and cleanly. At an RRP of £100 it is one of the more sensible buys in the distance-spike world, well under the price of the carbon super-spikes. In our view that is the point. This is a racer for club runners, students and county-level athletes who want a proper, fast track shoe without paying elite-tier money. It will not flatter a weak final 200m the way the priciest spikes do, but for honest distance racing it does the job and keeps doing it.

The Puma evoSPEED Distance Nitro Elite+ 4 is a middle and long distance track spike, built for the runner who lives for the last lap of a 1500m, 3000m or 5000m. This is not a road racer or a daily trainer, it is a stripped back racing shoe with one job: turn your fitness into fast lap splits. Puma pairs its Nitro foam with a Pebax propulsion plate, so you get a light, springy platform that still holds a spike plate underfoot for grip through the bends. In our view it sits with the sharpest distance spikes on the market, a genuine rival to the Nike Air Zoom Victory 2. At the top of the specialist spike price bracket, it is aimed squarely at serious track athletes. If you race on the oval and want a light, propulsive spike that rewards a fast turnover, this belongs on your shortlist.