Canyon previewed at this year's Eurobike show the disc-equipped road racers the German direct-to-consumer brand plans to supply to its Katusha and Movistar teams for testing this autumn. Canyon officially referred to its Ultimate CF SLX Disc showpiece as a 'concept' but make no mistake – this bike is coming to the public, and we're guessing sooner than later.
We obviously haven't had a chance to ride Canyon's new Ultimate CF SLX Disc but from what we can tell, it's going to be one hell of a bike. Based closely on the recently revamped standard Ultimate CF SLX, the Disc variant gets front and rear 12mm thru-axles instead of quick-release dropouts, and the latest flat-mount disc brake calipers at both ends.
12mm thru-axles and flat-mount disc brakes are used at both ends
Freed from the constraints of rim brakes, Canyon's frame engineers have even boosted the official maximum tire clearance to a whopping 30mm, which should make the new bike quite versatile.
Despite the impressive tire clearance, frame geometry remains nearly unchanged from the standard Ultimate CF SLX's aggressive ‘Sport Pro' layout. Chainstay length does grow a few millimeters to 415mm to satisfy Shimano's prescribed chainline requirements but thanks to a shorter head tube that compensates for the longer fork blades, stack and reach carry over intact. Bottom bracket drop and head tube angle are untouched, too, meaning the new bike should handle just as deftly as the rim brake version.
Canyon says there's room for 30mm rubber, which should greatly boost the bike's versatility
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Even better, all of that extra capability has apparently added barely 100g of extra weight. According to Canyon, the Ultimate CF SLX Disc weighs just 1,200g (2.65lb) for a medium frame, fork, and headset – excellent figures by anyone's measure.
Canyon has yet to announce when the new bike might go into production but there's little doubt that it will at some point – and probably in the relatively near future.
There's no word on when the Canyon Ultimate CF SLX Disc will be released but we're hoping it's soon