Spotted: Van der Poel Runs Mountain Bike Derailleur at the Tour de France

Stage 4 of the Tour de France departed Carcassonne with an aero focus and a surprise piece of mountain bike tech.

While 1x chainring setups are nothing new in professional racing — sprinters and classics specialists riding SRAM have used them for several seasons — the application remains narrow. We have seen 1x time trial configurations on Shimano-equipped bikes, but spotting a 1x Shimano road bike under an official Shimano-sponsored team is rare. Yet, that is exactly what sat on the start line on Tuesday.

The bike in question belongs to Alpecin-Premier Tech, the only team at this year’s Tour de France fully sponsored by Shimano for both groupsets and wheels. While many teams use Shimano, most purchase the equipment — admittedly at a hugely reduced price — which allows them to deviate with their component choices. Because Alpecin-Premier Tech is a marquee partner, spotting this 1x setup on Mathieu van der Poel’s bike is significant, especially since it was accomplished using non-sponsor-correct parts.

Those rogue components were on full display atop the team car in the baking heat, where Van der Poel’s single Canyon Aeroad sat waiting. The bike was equipped with an XTR Di2 RD-M9250-GS wireless rear derailleur, a 10-44 cassette, and a massive 56-tooth Digirit 1x carbon chainring — a component likely causing some chagrin at Shimano HQ. Snapping photos in the final moments before the team cars chased the peloton left no time to quiz the mechanics. However, this is the first time we at Velo have seen such a setup deployed for a road stage in the WorldTour.

The tactical choice to debut the configuration on the road to Foix comes down to geography. Though excessively hot, the flat profile leading into the foothills of the Pyrénées offered the perfect terrain for this setup; a second chainring wasn’t needed, and the aerodynamic gains of a 1x system would be highly advantageous. Alpecin’s bike sponsor, Canyon, recently announced an update to its Aeroad model at Eurobike, claiming it is now the fastest bike at the Tour de France with 198 watts of drag. That flagship build relies partly on a new UDH (Universal Derailleur Hanger), a one-piece Race bar, and a SRAM Red 1x groupset. The question is whether Van der Poel and his mechanics are simply trying to replicate that watt-saving aerodynamic package using a custom Shimano-equipped workaround.

If so, it is a privilege currently limited to the team leader. Van der Poel appeared to be the only rider using the setup, a nod to the fact that when you hold that much marketing power, it is much easier to dictate your equipment choices. We will keep an eye out for this bike in action. It will most likely get another airing — either under Van der Poel or on the roof of the team car  — come Friday when the race heads to Bordeaux. That flat and potentially windy stage would perfectly utilize the aero advantages of this specific build.