The 2015 WorldTour season is fast approaching and that means next year’s team bikes are beginning to break cover – starting with Katusha’s Canyon Aeroad CF SLX.

The Aeroad CF SLX was unveiled as the successor to Canyon’s original aero road machine, the Aeroad, ahead of the 2014 Tour de France, where Alexander Kristoff piloted the German firm’s flagship steed to two stage victories.

The frame is designed to combine the best attributes of the Canyon Speedmax CF time trial bike and the super-light Canyon Ultimate CF SLX, thanks to a series of aero tube profiles, adapted from the Speedmax and tweaked to perform better in crosswinds and at the lower speeds at which road bikes are typically ridden, and a claimed weight of 980g.

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That makes the Aeroad CF SLX one of the lightest fully-fledged aero frames around and, in this Katusha spec, it’s unlikely to trouble the scales.

While the sponsor merry-go-round sees some teams swap bike and/or component providers in the off-season, the machine ridden by Joaquim Rodriguez and co wears the same equipment as in the 2014 campaign, with a full Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 groupset and Mavic Cosmic wheels shod with the French firm’s Yksion Pro SSC GripLink/PowerLink tyres.

Canyon provide the own-brand finishing kit, with riders able to choose from the innovative one-piece Aerocockpit that was launched with the Aeroad CF SLX, or a traditional ‘bar and stem setup.

The Aeroad CF SLX is one of three bikes available to Katusha riders – and, for that matter, the Movistar squad also sponsored by Canyon – with some preferring the all-out low weight of the Ultimate CF SLX, while the Speedmax CF is deployed in TTs.

And if you like the look of the Katusha’s Aeroad CF SLX, it’s one of the few WorldTour team bikes you can buy a replica of. Yours for £5,399.