The last bastion has finally fallen. In 2025, for the first time, there will be no rim brakes on the WorldTour, across all of the teams’ road and time trial bikes.
The news came with the announcement of Bianchi’s new Aquila RC time trial bike. In 2024, bike manufacturers Bianchi and Giant provided the only rim-brake-equipped machines to the WorldTour, the former to Arkéa-B&B Hotels, and the latter to Jayco AlUla.
Giant succumbed to disc brakes with the release of its new Trinity TT bike last month, and Bianchi has now followed suit. Mark the date – 5 February 2024, the final nail in the rim brake coffin.
Bianchi’s new model is the fruit of 20 months’ worth of development, and is “designed to redefine speed,” according to the brand. As well as swapping the brakes, Bianchi has also optimised the handlebar, seatpost and bottom bracket, all in a bid to go faster.
The Aquila RC will be raced by Arkéa-B&B Hotels for the first time this Sunday, during the final day time trial at the Étoile de Bessèges. As a result, the final outing of a WorldTour team on rim brakes was the Chrono des Nations in October last year.
The frame of Bianchi’s new Aquila RC TT bike is said to weigh 1.3kg
(Image credit: Bianchi)
Depending on the wheel and frame set-up, rim brakes are typically lighter than disc brakes, and easier to maintain. They are, however, less reactive than discs, particularly in wet conditions, and can pose a small obstruction to the bike’s aerodynamics.
Rim brakes disappeared from WorldTour road bikes in 2022, but have remained on time trial bikes for the last two years.
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Both Giant and Bianchi’s offerings previously hid the calliper behind the front fork, helping to smooth the air flow around the frame.
The previous edition of Giant’s Trinity TT bike placed the callipers behind the front fork.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
The last WorldTour teams using rim brakes in bunch events were Ineos Grenadiers and UAE Team Emirates, with Tadej Pogačar switching between rims and discs at the Tour de France in 2021.
“For me, it’s all about the weight,” Pogačar said in autumn that year. “I’m happy to use both disc brakes and rim brakes. I opted for rim brakes at Il Lombardia because there were two two steep climbs in the finale, where I was perhaps going to make an attack. I realised that lightweight wheels would be important and they’re the lightest with rim brakes.”
The Slovenian made the full transition to disc brakes with the introduction of the Colnago V4Rs in 2022.
Ineos Grenadiers also ditched rim brakes on their Pinarello Dogma F bikes in 2022. At the time, the bike brand’s owner, Fausto Pinarello, said he had been “convinced” about disc brakes ever since he began riding with them himself. “I’m happy the team is going to race on them in this final part of the season,” he said.
