Astana's Fabio Aru arrived to the Criterium du Dauphine with his form unknown after nearly three months without a race. The Sardinian, who won the Vuelta a España in 2015, looked to test himself ahead of the Tour de France where he will line up alongside teammate and eventual winner Jakob Fuglsang.
For the Criterium du Dauphine, Canadian frame manufacturer Argon 18 presented Aru with a custom painted Gallium Pro frameset. Dubbed 'metallised red', the distinctive design features mirror silver decals and Aru's name and logo on the top tube.
At last year's edition of the race, the Astana team raced on Specialized bikes and Aru rode a custom painted red and white Specialized Tarmac, paying homage to his Sardinian roots.
This year's bike is a combination of FSA and Shimano drivetrain components, and while the shifting is handled by Shimano Dura-Ace 9000 series components, Aru runs a FSA K-Force Light crankset with 53/39t chain rings.
The Astana team generally runs Shimano Ultegra cassettes and chains to keep overall costs down, and potentially add weight to ensure the bikes meet the minimum 6.8kg limit set by the UCI.
FSA also provides the seat post and cockpit, which is finished with a K-Edge out-front Garmin mount.
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Finishing kit also includes a Prologo Nago Evo saddle in Astana team colours and an FSA K-Force Light carbon seat post.
Astana runs Corima wheels and while the team partners with Schwalbe to provide tyres, Aru opts for a set of Specialized S-Works Turbo tubular tyres with the label blacked out with marker pen.
Complete bike specification Frame: Argon18 Gallium Pro Brakes: Shimano Dura-Ace 9100 Brake/shift levers: Shimano Dura-Ace 9070 Front derailleur: Shimano Dura-Ace 9070 Rear derailleur: Shimano Dura-Ace 9070 Cassette: Shimano Ultegra, 11-28t Chain: Shimano Ultegra Crankset: FSA K-Force Light, 53/39t with Power2Max power meter Wheelset: Corima 47 S+ Tyres: Specialized S-Works Turbo tubular, 26mm Handlebars: FSA K-Force Light carbon, 420mm Stem: FSA OS168 alloy Headset: FSA Pedals: Look Keo Blade Carbon Saddle: Prologo Nago Evo in Astana team colours Seat post: FSA K-Force Light carbon Bottle cages: Tacx Deva Computer mount: K-Edge Sport
Critical measurements Weight: 66 kg Height: 183 cm
