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We scoured the start lines and team pits to track down the newest tech racing in the peloton. Here is your look at the unreleased gear from Specialized, Look, Van Rysel, and more.
The Tour de France is officially underway, and for tech fans, that means one thing: new bikes. With hilly stages, flat sprints, and a team time trial already behind us, the pre-release prototypes are finally out in the open, giving us a complete look at the arsenals teams will rely on for the rest of the race.
While some of this tech debuted under the radar at the Critérium du Dauphiné (or whatever ASO wants to call it in 2026), the Tour is where these bikes step into the limelight. It’s the one race where teams and brands are perfectly happy to let journalists snap photos and spread the word that there’s new tech in town. We’ve roamed the pits and hotels to gather the best new and unreleased bikes from the race.
Hello, Bonjour et Bienvenue sur la couverture technique du Tour de France par Velo. Veuillez lancer la vidéo. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)
Compared to last year’s relatively slim pickings, 2026 brings a solid crop of fresh hardware. In total, we’ve spotted five new bikes under teams, ranging from recent releases to unannounced prototypes.
We’ve spotted Orbea’s new Orca Aero, which takes a slightly different approach to eking out aerodynamic gains. TotalEnergies’ new bike sponsor, Cube, has delivered a steed that strays from the current industry design consensus while sticking strictly to the brand’s signature aesthetics. There is also a new Bianchi Specialissima doing the rounds in the start area, though it has yet to roll across a start line. Finally, there is the Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL9. While the frame itself has already sparked plenty of conversation for its iterative update, the Specialized paint department has gone to town, delivering stunning custom finishes for Soudal-QuickStep, Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe, and a certain rider who requires a dash of gold on his frame.
A slight upgrade on what GVA had when he won the Olympics. Red Bull’s paint shop knows a thing or two about applying the color. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)
Then there are the French brands. Look has equipped Cofidis with the updated Look 795 Blade RS 3. As always, the design is highly stylized, harking back to the traditions that cemented Look as an iconic brand. We are told the new bike is a distinct upgrade over the current-generation Blade, checking all the boxes expected of a bike designed for the 2026 market and modern pro demands.
As for that other French sports goods powerhouse, Decathlon has placed a new Van Rysel under four riders of the Decathlon-CMA CGM team. It appears to be an update to the RCR, their well-rounded race bike, as several team members are still using the aero-focused RCR-F. If this iteration rides even better than the first-generation RCR, it should be an absolute dream — the original version thoroughly impressed me during a Roubaix recon last year.
If you want to see moving images of the gear, complete with an American (Velo tech editor Logan Jones-Wilkins) and a Brit (moi) discussing what actually excites us — and what misses the mark — about these new bikes, hit the play button.
Is this the new RCR from van Rysel? (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)