Team Sky to ride Pinarello

Pinarello will supply Team Sky with their bikes for the next three years. Team Sky and the Italian company today announced that they have signed a technical partner deal that will see Pinarello supply the new team with frames, forks, seat posts and headsets.

Commenting on the new agreement, Dave Brailsford, Team Principal for Team Sky, said: “We are thrilled to be riding Pinarello bikes. Joining up with this great producer is a crucial step for Team Sky. With Pinarello we have found the perfect partner to supply and develop an extraordinary line of bikes for our riders.
 
He continued: “The choice of bike has been a key decision. From the first talks, we found an immediate understanding with Pinarello on what this team is about; performance and perfection. The ways that Pinarello combine their life-long passion for the bike with the latest technology are genuinely inspired.  Pinarello are now a fundamental part of the team and will help our relentless efforts to have the best possible tools for Team Sky.”

Along with Colnago and De Rosa, Pinarello is one of the big glamour brands of Italian cycling with a long and successful racing heritage, even so their bikes certainly divide opinion in terms of looks – it's those wiggly forks and rear stays, and the claimed perfomance advantages of those carbons wiggles.

While we now know what frames and forks the Sky riders will have at their disposal, there is still no word on who will supply the wheels and drivetrain. SRAM have been aggresively courting top teams in the last few years, but Shimano's anti-drug stance might sit well with what Team Sky are all about, however there is a strong whisper that the Italian connection will continue when it comes to the drivetrain at least.

Wheels – well the hoops of choice for pros seem to be Zipp, but rider preference is not necessarily the deal clincher when it comes to team equipment.