New bike day for Pogačar! Lighter, faster, sharper: new Colnago TT2 unveiled in Romandie

Tadej Pogačar makes his Tour de Romandie debut on Tuesday at the race's opening prologue — and he will do so on a brand new time trial bike. The UAE leader will be the first rider to race the Colnago TT2 in competition, with the updated machine designed to give him an even sharper edge over his rivals.

The TT2 is an improved version of the Colnago TT1 that Pogačar has raced until now. Despite the bike not going on sale to the public until September, the Slovenian will already be racing it at Romandie — one of the few major races that has so far eluded him.

Colnago's primary focus with the TT2 has been weight reduction. The new bike is 550 grams lighter than its predecessor — a significant saving. That will be particularly valuable in time trials with climbing involved, such as Tuesday's prologue in Romandie — and also the Tour de France time trial to come. Stage sixteen of this year's Tour features almost 500 metres of elevation gain over 26 kilometres. Being able to leave 550 grams at home for that one is far from trivial.

Alongside the weight reduction, the Italian manufacturer has also made aerodynamic improvements. At a speed of 50 kilometres per hour, the new TT2 is estimated to save around 2 watts over the previous model. That may sound small, but in the era of marginal gains, every fraction counts.

Colnago has also worked on the bike's stability under lateral forces — the sideways pressure a rider exerts when pedalling hard. The new frame reduces that flex considerably, giving the rider more control and requiring fewer small steering corrections to hold a line. The net effect is that speed is maintained more efficiently.

Whether Pogačar immediately reaps the benefits of his new race machine will become clear on Tuesday afternoon. The Slovenian is due to start his 3.2-kilometre race against the clock at 17:17.