Adidas Cross IT Carbon Blue By Maxi Arce 2025

Technologies

Pros

• ✓The 11 Thirteen drilling pattern pairs 13 standard holes with 11 smaller ones to stiffen the frame, so flat smashes come off crisp and deformation-free even on off-centre, high hits, while Dynamic Air Flow cuts air resistance in a way you genuinely feel on the vibora and the smash por 3, letting the head whip through faster than its high balance would suggest, the Soft Performance EVA rubber cushions just enough to give surprisingly generous ball exit on the bandeja and defensive lob for a 375g diamond, the sandy surface with the Spin Blade mould bites hard on cut shots and kick serves, with the bounce dying away sharply after landing, and Power Extra Grip keeps the racket locked in your hand through repeated smashes, where a grip that twists mid-swing can send a flat kill shot straight out of court

Cons

• ✗The 360-375g weight and high balance punish you in defence: get caught late on a ball hugging the side wall and there's simply no time to square the face, so the return comes up short, the sweet spot itself is narrow and sits high on the face, meaning blocked volleys taken near the throat lose noticeably more pace than shots met up top, the soft core paired with a 38mm frame demands genuine arm speed — players who can't generate their own racket head speed will find it dead in defensive, containment shots, and the 'control' label can mislead: this isn't a forgiving racket for long baseline rallies, it controls because the soft touch gives you feedback, not because the geometry bails you out

The Adidas Cross IT Carbon Blue By Maxi Arce 2025 targets advanced players with consolidated technique who want more performance without yet moving to a pure competition racket. Its diamond shape moves the sweet spot to the top of the face, giving more leverage and power at the cost of some tolerance. The high balance adds weight to the swing and pushes the racket toward an offensive profile. Its 360-375g weight range places it in the medium-weight group, the most common among amateur players.

The Adidas Cross IT Carbon Blue By Maxi Arce 2025 ships with a built-in contradiction: diamond shape, high balance, a 38mm frame and 360-375g of weight, yet a 6K carbon face over Soft Performance EVA rubber and a control-play label stuck on the box. That tug-of-war between aggressive geometry and forgiving materials is exactly what defines this padel racket.

Why a 38mm diamond racket gets marketed as a control racket

This positioning isn't a catalogue slip-up. The Cross IT Carbon Blue was developed with Maxi Arce for players who want control without giving up power, and the route Adidas takes to get there is touch, not shape.

A high-balance diamond generates swing torque and head speed by design. What Adidas does is tuck a soft rubber — Soft Performance EVA — under a 6K carbon face so the ball dwells on the strike zone for a few extra milliseconds.

That extra dwell time is information: you feel exactly where the ball landed and can correct your angle before you release. That's the control this racket is actually promising — not the kind a round-shaped racket offers by forgiving off-centre hits.

Adidas Cross IT Carbon Blue: full spec sheet

11 Thirteen and Dynamic Air Flow: what they actually do on court

The 11 Thirteen drilling pattern combines 13 standard-size holes with 11 smaller ones. Less perforated surface area in the critical zones means a stiffer frame, and on a diamond racket a stiffer frame means less energy bleeds away when contact drifts toward the upper edge.

On court that shows up on the flat smash from the back: the frame doesn't flex, so the ball comes back on the same line it went in on. The smash por 3 flies with a predictable trajectory — exactly what tends to break down on diamond rackets with softer frames.

Dynamic Air Flow tackles the format's other weak point: air resistance. A high-balance 38mm diamond racket is a lot of mass to haul through the air, and the aero shaping trims a chunk of that drag.

The payoff shows up most on the vibora, where the swing is short and you need the head arriving at speed. It also shows up on the second and third smash of the same point, once the arm's already carrying fatigue.

Spin Blade Mould shapes the sandy surface to maximise bite. Cut shots and kick serves come off with clear rotation and a bounce that dies away fast — the spin here isn't a bonus feature, it's baked into the racket's attacking game plan.

What level of player is the Adidas Cross IT Carbon Blue built for?

Advanced, full stop, no marketing wiggle room. The mix of high balance, 375g at the top of its range and a narrow sweet spot demands your own arm speed and early preparation.

The player who gets the most out of it is a backhand-side attacker who finishes points at the net, hunting the salida por 3 or a flat smash into the mesh. If your game leans on containment, high defensive lobs and long rallies waiting for the opponent's error, this isn't your racket — it just sits dead in your hand.

As a doubles pairing, it works well alongside a more manoeuvrable drive-side partner who can cover defence while this one holds the attacking position.

Shot-by-shot feel on court

Smash and vibora. This is where the racket earns its keep. High head acceleration, a stiff frame and a grippy surface: the smash por 3 and the cross-court vibora both come off with real pace and bite.

Bandeja. Better than expected. The Soft Performance EVA rubber delivers solid ball exit on a shot played with a controlled swing, and it stops the bandeja falling short when you're not adding your own power.

Wall exits. This is where you pay the toll. The high balance means you need to start your preparation before the ball even hits the glass; get there a beat late and the face doesn't square up in time, so the ball comes back shallow.

Volleys. Solid on blocked volleys struck high on the face. Down near the throat it loses noticeably more pace, a direct consequence of a sweet spot the diamond shape already pushes upward.

Defence. The weak link. In fast net exchanges, 375g doesn't move as quickly as a round-shaped racket, and balls aimed at the body become a real struggle.

Verdict: power dressed up as control

The Adidas Cross IT Carbon Blue is fundamentally an attacking racket whose soft touch lets it wear the control label. Both things are true at once, but the order matters: it hits first, informs second.

Buy it if you're an advanced player with a fast arm, play the backhand side, and want a signature racket — Maxi Arce's — without swallowing the usual harshness of an attacking diamond.

Skip it if your strength is back-court defence, if head-heavy weight wears you down, or if you want a racket that forgives off-centre contact. The 38mm frame and narrow sweet spot won't budge on that.

One useful buying note: some international listings tag it as "Maxi Maple," a mangled transliteration of the surname Arce. It's the same racket.