The Marathon Project 2025 is back—and it’s exactly the kind of race that makes runners lean in. Built around one obsession (“as fast as possible”), this late-December weekend in Chandler, Arizona (Dec 19–21, 2025) delivered what it promises: a flat, controlled setting where pacing, fueling, and decision-making are exposed for what they are.
This recap covers the The Marathon Project 2025 results, the race story, and the most useful takeaways for everyday marathoners: pacing you can actually execute, a practical fueling framework, and how to recreate “fast-course conditions” closer to home—without pretending the marathon is ever easy.
What is The Marathon Project—and why should recreational runners care?
The Marathon Project was created to strip away distractions and maximize performance. It’s not a sightseeing marathon. It’s a purpose-built race weekend with pacers, elite fields, and a course designed for fast times.
Want the official overview? Start here: The Marathon Project (official site).
When and where was The Marathon Project 2025 held?
The pro marathon took place on Sunday, December 21, 2025, in Chandler, Arizona. The weekend format matters: you’re looking at a race experience engineered for rhythm—flat terrain, predictable footing, and fewer variables than most big-city marathons.
If you’re curious how the weekend was structured and followed live, this schedule breakdown is helpful context: The Marathon Project 2025 schedule and live tracking.
The Marathon Project 2025 results: top 5 women and men
Fast course or not, the marathon still rewards control. Here are the top 5 finishers in each pro race (women and men), as reported in published results and recap coverage.
| Place | Women | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Priscah Cherono | 2:25:17 |
| 2 | Molly Grabill | 2:28:56 |
| 3 | Jane Bareikis | 2:30:16 |
| 4 | Hanna Lindholm | 2:31:19 |
| 5 | Mica Rivera Wood | 2:31:35 |
| Place | Men | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | JP Flavin | 2:09:18 |
| 2 | Turner Wiley | 2:09:27 |
| 3 | Nadeel Wildschutt | 2:09:40 |
| 4 | Benjamin Rosa | 2:09:47 |
| 5 | Nicholas Hauger | 2:10:18 |
Quick recap + results list: Runner’s World: The Marathon Project 2025 results. Official race results page: TMP Results (official).
The race story: why winning a “perfect course” is still hard
A flat course doesn’t hand out performances—it removes excuses. If you go out too hard, you still pay. If you under-fuel, you still fade. And if you stay disciplined, your execution shines even brighter.
On the women’s side, Priscah Cherono took the win in 2:25:17. Her performance is also reflected in her official athlete profile: Priscah Cherono on World Athletics.
On the men’s side, the tactical headline was patience: the win went to JP Flavin in 2:09:18 after the race dynamics shifted late. For a strategy-focused breakdown (packs, moves, and how the late stages decided it), see: LetsRun: men’s race analysis.
3 pacing lessons you can steal from The Marathon Project
Here’s the big takeaway: pacing is the marathon superpower. A flat course makes it tempting to run a pace your fitness hasn’t earned. That’s where PR attempts usually break.
- Run your pace, not someone else’s. “Hanging on” to a faster group feels free early—and expensive later. Tie your goal pace to key workouts, not pre-race adrenaline.
- Controlled early miles beat early heroics. You don’t need a perfect negative split, but you do need to avoid the “free first 10K” trap.
- Make small decisions on purpose. Check in every 5K: breathing, form, gel timing, hydration, posture. Big marathons are built from small choices.
Fueling: the simplest way to “buy” minutes late in the race
In fast marathons, fueling isn’t optional—it’s the plan. A practical framework for many runners is to think in carbs per hour and execute it with discipline:
- 60–90g of carbs per hour if your stomach tolerates it (train this in long runs).
- One gel every 25–35 minutes (adjust based on gel concentration and your needs).
- Small sips of water, especially with more concentrated gels.
- No race-day experiments. Practice exactly what you’ll use.
If you want a performance “multiplier” that helps everything above, efficiency matters—your pace feels easier at the same effort when your running economy improves. (If you’re reading this in EN and want the ES internal reference, here’s the SnapRace post on running economy): Economía de carrera (SnapRace).
How to recreate the “TMP effect” in your own city
You don’t need a pro bib to borrow the principles:
- Pick a measured, flat loop you can repeat (park, waterfront path, quiet roads).
- Choose the smartest start time (usually early morning) to reduce wind/heat.
- Use pacing support: watch alerts, lap discipline, or a friend pacing a segment.
- Test your fueling in long runs: same gels, same timing, same drink plan.
- Taper properly—fresh legs are faster legs.
Strength work is one of the biggest “late-race stability” tools you can add—especially when form starts to slip after 30K. Here’s a practical guide (ES internal link): Strength training for runners (SnapRace, ES).
Where SnapRace fits (simple, not complicated)
If you’re chasing a PR, tracking execution beats guessing. SnapRace can help you:
- Build and repeat routes so your progress is comparable (same loop, similar conditions).
- Spot pacing drift early by reviewing splits—before it turns into a blow-up.
- Turn marathon-pace segments into a motivating, measurable challenge instead of “just another workout.”
The Marathon Project 2025 proves a simple truth: when the course removes the noise, what’s left is the real craft—pacing, fueling, mindset, consistency. That’s how PRs are built, wherever you race next.