Giro d'Italia 2019: Richard Carapaz's Canyon Ultimate CF SLX

Movistar's Richard Carapaz became the first Ecuadorian Grand Tour winner on Sunday when he sealed victory in the Giro d'Italia, and here's his Canyon Ultimate CF SLX – the model that he used for the majority of the race.

As distinct from the Aeroad which is all about aerodynamics, the Ultimate CF SLX is Canyon's lightweight race bike with some aero features. The last update to the rim brake version of this bike was added to the UCI's List of Approved Models of Frames and Forks back in March 2015 – quite a long time in World Tour tech terms.

All pictures © BettiniPhoto / Movistar Team

Our reviewer Stu Kerton loved the Shimano Dura-Ace version of this bike (Movistar use Campagnolo components, see below). He said, "Wow. Just simply – wow. Bang for buck, you'll struggle to find a better race machine. But even taking value out of the equation, you'll be hard pressed to beat the weight and performance of the German company's 'all-round' racer."

Read our Canyon Ultimate CF SLX 9.0 review here 

In terms of aero features, the Ultimate sports a down tube profile with the bottom face (closest to the road) being rounded to create a 'D' shape. Compared with the previous Ultimate, the profile is narrower with a rounder nose, which is designed to decrease flow separation by ensuring the air sticks to the tube. 

Making the down tube narrower has an impact on stiffness, though, so Canyon developed a box section top tube and wider seatstays to provide the necessary frame stiffness.

Standing 1.70m tall (5ft 7in) tall, Richard Carapaz takes an XS frame with a 52.9cm top tube, 46.2cm seat tube and 11.3cm head tube. 

Movistar's frames are usually light blue at the front, fading to dark blue at the centre and rear but, as is often the case, the sponsors have given this one the pink treatment to mark Carapaz's race lead and ultimate victory.

The bike is fitted with Canyon's carbon-fibre H36 combined handlebar and stem that's designed with aerodynamics in mind. The top of the bar section uses an aero profile that Canyon calls Trident, and there's a step in the moulding that makes for a seamless transition between the tape and bar tops.

The H36 is narrow, the idea being that this makes for a more compact and aerodynamic riding position. Carapaz's bar is just 390mm wide with a 74mm reach and a 130mm drop. The stem section is quite a conservative length by professional rider standards at 100mm. 

The sticky bar tape if from Lizard Skins.

The Canyon's 27.2mm-diameter S13 VCLS (Vertical Comfort, Lateral Stiffness) carbon-fibre seatpost is designed to absorb vibration. Movistar riders use saddles from Fizik's range, Carapaz choosing an Antares 00 with carbon rails and a claimed weight of just 140g (he has a white one in the action pics, but an on-message pink version when posing with the rest of the team).  

The groupset is Campagnolo's top level Super Record, 12-speed with EPS electronic shifting and rim brakes. Carapaz has a 53/39-tooth chainset and 11-29-tooth cassette fitted here.

Find out about Campagnolo Super Record EPS 12-speed 

The wheels are from Campag too: Bora Ultras with 50mm deep carbon rims, carbon hubs and ceramic bearings.

These are fitted Continental Pro Ltd tubular tyres in a 25mm width. These are incredibly popular among the pro teams. 

Carapaz's chainset-based powermeter is from German brand power2max.

Although you can barely see them here, the pedals are Look Keo Blade Carbon and the bottle cages are Elite Vico Carbon.