Unlike Jonas Vingegaard, Pogačar only has the use of one bike, so it has to handle everything
(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Tadej Pogačar is a force to be reckoned with at any race he takes to the start of. His Grand Tour track record is nothing short of staggering - in the six Grand Tours he has completed he has never finished off the podium.
That being said, Pogačar will be hoping to return to the top step of the podium at this year’s Tour de France after being bettered into second place two years in a row by Visma Lease a Bike’s Jonas Vingegaard.
The bike of choice for Pogačar and his UAE Team Emirates teammates is Colnago’s do-it-all race bike the V4RS. Released back in 2022 the V4Rs was the evolution of the V3Rs, upon which Pogačar had raced to two previous Tour de France victories.
When the V4Rs was released Colnago claimed that through a redesign of the head tube thanks to some innovative technology from Ceramic Speed it was able to remove the need for the integrated front end to be disassembled.
The technology in question is CeramicSpeed's SLT (Solid Lubrication Technology) headset which uses a solid polymer to lubricate the bearings. When this technology is paired with a ceramic bearing the end result is theoretically a headset that never needs to be replaced.
The V4Rs comes as stock with a CC01 one-piece bar and stem that Colnago claims is 16% more efficient than the cockpit of the V3Rs, but Pogačar goes without this and instead opts for what looks to be a custom-made ENVE SES AR integrated cockpit.
The exact model found on Pogačar’s bike is not commercially available with Pogačar tweaking the geometry of the bar to match his exacting preference.
With two second-place finishes at the Tour, a win at the Giro d'Italia, and wins at both the Ronde Van Vlaanderen and Liege-Bastogne-Liege already on the V4Rs, Pogačar will be hoping to add the Tour de France overall to the bikes already bulging win list.
Pogačar's V4Rs is the teams do-it-all superbike (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Although UAE Team Emirates is a Shimano-sponsored team Pogačar uses a set of Carbon Ti chainrings mounted to the top-tier Dura-Ace R9100 crankset. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Crank length is something Pogačar has been experimenting with over the past season. The bike he is riding at this year's Tour de France is fitted with 165mm cranks that theoretically allow for a higher cadence as well as increasing rider aerodynamics. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Heading up Pogačar's bike is what looks to be a custom ENVE SES AR integrated cockpit. With the commercially available model retailing for $1,200, this custom model certainly won't come cheap. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Pogačar is using a hybrid chainring combination of 55/40 giving him a wider spread of gears. Typically we see riders running either 54/40 or 55/42 so this looks to be a considered and purposeful alteration. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
A nice finishing touch is the route of the Di2 power cable weaving in through the cutout of the anodised rear derailleur hanger. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Pogačar has opted to use Shimano's 11-34 Dura-Ace cassette giving him the widest spread of gears and giving a low enough climbing gear with the 40-tooth inner chainring. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Peeking out from under the bar tape are Shimano's sprint shifters that allow Pogačar to shift in the drops, something that we are likely to see a lot of in the coming stages. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
As low as it gets, Pogačar has his custom ENVE bars slammed to the head tube of the V4RS. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The fins extending out from the callipers aim to help with heat dissipation. On long mountain descents such as on stage 4 from the Col du Galibier to Valloire keeping the brakes cool provides consistent and predictable braking. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Carbon Ti doesn't only provides Pogačar with chainrings. The discs fitted use a floating rotor mounted to a carbon fibre spider. This design saves weight over a traditional fully metal disc rotor. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Prologo provides the saddle, with Pogačar using the Nago R4 in a 147mm width. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The 30mm width Continental GP5000 S TR tyres are some of the widest being used at the Tour de France. The ENVE SES 4.5 wheelset have a 25mm internal rim width and a 32mm external width optimised for use with wider tyres. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The ENVE AR integrated cockpit measures 37cm from centre to centre. Pogačar likes to have his levers pointed inwards making his riding position a little narrower and more aerodynamic. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Elite provides the minimalist Leggero Carbon bottle cages weighing just 17 grams each. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Even the small finishing details have been thought about with the top cap compression bolt coming from Carbon Ti to save every gram possible. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
It's not difficult to work out the connotations of the Hulk sticker that sits centre stage on the bars. With his attacking nature already being seen on both stages two and four we a sure to see more of his Hulk-like attacking demeanour. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The seat stays sit wide enough to accept up to a 32mm tyre, though it appears he stuck to a 30c for the gravel stage. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
At 176cm Pogačar is not a particularly tall rider but this hasn't stopped him from adopting a very aggressive riding position with his stem slammed and plenty of seat post extending above the V4Rs frame. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Shimano provides the bulk of the drivetrain components including the dual-sided Dura-Ace power meter. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
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