Pinarello have handed Team Sky’s Chris Froome and Geraint Thomas a secret weapon for the Tour de France – the new Dogma F8Xlight.
The Dogma F8Xlight is a super-light version of the British duo’s regular race-day Dogma F8, with Pinarello stripping a further 80g from the frame to bring the weight down to a claimed 780g for a size 53cm, while the fork weight has dropped from 360g to 340g.
Pinarello have released limited details about the frame and, at first glance, it looks the same as the regular Dogma F8 in terms of geometry and tube profiles. The weight savings have been made under the skin.
This is very much a climbers’ bike and Pinarello have slapped a 154lbs (69.8kg) rider weight limit on the frame. The Dogma F8Xlight is a machine where every ounce of weight matters but it will still have to comply with the UCI’s 6.8kg bike weight limit.
Froome first rode the F8Xlight at the Criterium du Dauphine and used it when he won stage eight of the Tour de France. Anyone concerned about how the Dogma’s handling may have been affected by reducing the frame weight need only look at Froome’s stage-winning descent from the Col de Peyresourde.
The regular Dogma F8 was launched ahead of the 2014 Tour de France and Froome rode the bike to victory at last year’s race. It’s said to be 12 per cent stiffer, 47 per cent more aerodynamic and 120g lighter than its predecessor, the Dogma 65.1 Think 2 – the bike on which Froome won his first Tour title in 2013, and Sir Bradley Wiggins a year earlier.
Pinarello say just 200 Dogma F8Xlight frames will be made, available in either Team Sky colours or red and black.
Website: Pinarello
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