Cervelo R5 Red ETap AXS

The completely redesigned R5 from Cervélo is craving for speed – more than ever before! The new frame has slimmed down by 130 g and brings you even faster up the mountain. In conjunction with the high-end equipment from SRAM, the Red eTap AXS drivetrain, not only altitude meters, but also the arrow-fast descents are extremely fun!

Fast climber with descent qualities – the R5 from Cervélo

R5 has one job—get to the top, fast. But for all the glory and fanfare that comes with a summit finish, they’re rarely the only climb of the day. And while a race isn’t usually won on a descent, they can certainly be lost. A climbing bike that can’t carve a hairpin is a bit like a cup of decaf coffee. This is the fourth iteration of the R5, and while weight and stiffness have varied over the years, the handling, poise, and unmatched prowess on a descent have been consistent since day one.

What has been improved on the new Cervélo R5?
If you wanted to find a point of criticism with the predecessor, it was its stiffness. Its mountain goat-like climbing skills took their toll on the bones. While not a problem for most, Cervélo’s World Tour teams felt this bike became more uncomfortable with each week of a long tour. So – reduce stiffness? On a bike made for climbing? Sounded crazy at first, but Cervélo got to work. Their engineers had previously found that a certain ratio between head tube and bottom bracket stiffness offered the magic formula to increase ride quality – but they hadn’t applied it to the R5 yet, since the goal here was to build the stiffest bike possible.

Cervélo has been working on different layups, trying them out themselves and, of course, sending them to Team Jumbo Visma for testing. Tom Dumoulin, who had already ridden and loved an R5 with Team Sunweb, was the best candidate in the early stages of testing. The result? Positive without any reservations. Dumoulin said he could conquer climbs just as efficiently with this bike and that the added « conformity » would contribute to less fatigue and allow for faster recovery. Team Jumbo-Visma verified it – and then the racing season got underway.

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Features – Cervélo R5 Red eTap AXS

THE R5 FRAME
The R5’s new frame is 130g lighter than its predecessor – that’s a 16% weight savings from a frame that was already lightweight anyway. The new frame weighs 703g and the new fork 329g, putting the frame and fork just a touch over the one-kilogram mark. Cervélo was also able to save some weight on some components – the handlebars and stem are each 12g lighter and the seatpost is even 20g lighter. Although aerodynamics don’t have the same focus on this bike as they do on an S5 or P5, integrating the cables inward has resulted in a 25g aerodynamic drag savings on the frame. The new R5 is faster in every way!

Reserve carbon wheels
High-quality Reserve carbon wheels have been available from Santa Cruz for a few years, until now exclusively for MTBs. The wheels with the excellent reputation are now also finding their way on the road bike: Together with their corporate sibling Cervélo, the Californians have developed a wheelset that combines the well-known robustness with a good portion of aerodynamics. When the racing gets real, the Reserve wheels comes into its own. The profile was designed in collaboration with the aero wizards at Cervelo to ensure we delivered the optimal blend of gram savings—on the scales and in the wind tunnel.

RIDE QUALITY
A high performance bike you can trust. Stiffness and geometry work together for pedaling efficiency and stable handling. Wider tires and frame compliance create a smoother ride to help reduce your fatigue. Disc brakes ensure controlled braking in all conditions.

SPEED
We made the R5 stiffer at key points in the bike while maintaining its featherweight status. In fact, the disc model of the R5 is our stiffest ever road bike frame. The R5’s careful balancing of stiffness and weight results in a bike that accelerates quickly but is stable and predictable at speed.

BBright™
Cervélo developed BBright™ to take advantage of the fact that oversized frame tubes are stiffer and lighter. With the BBright™ system, larger-sized tubes are used in the seat tube, down tube, and left hand chain stay. The benefit is increased stiffness and pedaling efficiency in a lighter weight frame. BBright™ is compatible with all major crank standards.

Pro Road Fit
Cervélo’s Pro Fit offers our lowest frame stack heights to enable an aerodynamic riding position. The Pro Fit is the direct result of input from our pro racers who wanted to get their handlebars as low as possible for maximum aerodynamic advantage.

Squoval™ Max
Squoval™ Max tubes are a library of tube shapes that combine the attributes of a square with an oval but with a more aerodynamic leading edge. With these unique shapes, we dial in the ideal balance of stiffness and weight in specific areas of a frame, while reducing aerodynamic drag.

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Please note that pedals are not included!

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R5 | What Goes Up Must Come Down