Asics Gel Kinsei Max 'Black Sunrise Red'
Colorway: Black/Sunrise Red · Style code: 1011B696-002 · Release date: December 22, 2023 · Price: $349 · Availability: Available now
More colorways: ASICS Gel Kinsei Max 'Black' (1011B696-001) · Asics Gel Kinsei Max 'Carrier Grey Illusion Blue' (1011B696-021) · ASICS GelKinsei Max Sneakers (1011B696-250) · ASICS Gel Kinsei Max 'Pale Mint Moonrock' (1011B696-300) · Asics Gel Kinsei Max 'French Blue Bright Orange' (1011B696-400)
Kinsei has always meant the top of the ASICS cushioning range, and the Max version reads as the most literal answer to that brief. Its midsole measures close to 39mm at the heel and just over 30mm at the forefoot, built from FF Blast Plus Eco foam sitting above a hybrid GEL element rather than the exposed GEL windows the 2006 original wore on its sidewall. Torsionally it is close to rigid, which is unusual for a shoe this soft and is part of why it feels planted rather than wobbly at that height.
That combination has a cost. At roughly 11.4 ounces it sits at the heavy end of the road-trainer range, and measured energy return is modest for the price bracket. The shoe is not trying to be quick; it is trying to make long, slow mileage comfortable for runners who land heavily.
The upper is mesh with reflective detailing and a semi-gusseted tongue, here finished in black with red picking out the branding.