The last on this list didn't take long to rack up its first victory of the season under former world champion Mads Pedersen.
In his post race press conference he remained tight lipped, with a firm "No comment" to my inquisitions, but I was fortunate enough to spend five minutes with the bike at the finish line while Pedersen fulfilled his post race duties and went up to the podium to collect a technicolour array of jerseys.
We can glean a lot from the pictures, though the deliberately obfuscative label on the top tube, which is both 'Madone' and 'Emonda' overlaid atop one other, gives us no further clue as to what this bike is.
Here's the new Madone/Emonda. It's clearly a slimmed down Madone, or a bigger, more aero Emonda... who's to say at this point. Whatever it is, it's not doing a very good job of hiding in plain sight as it's taken a victory on its first day of racing. (Image credit: Will Jones)
Within these unusual bottle cages are usually housed aero bottles. These effectively raise the bottom bracket area halfway up the down tube in airflow terms, so are probably of huge benefit, even if they are likely more fiddly to put the bottles back into. (Image credit: Will Jones)
Underneath the bottom bracket there's a black cover, presumably for a Di2 battery for anyone using Shimano. (Image credit: Will Jones)
Pederson's bike had the new Red AXS brake calipers, but not the new Paceline X Rotors launched with the new groupset (Image credit: Will Jones)
The cockpit looks very similar to that of the current model, so that may well not be new. (Image credit: Will Jones)
Mads is a fiend for using 1x setups, and today was no different. While we suspect the largest sprocket was rarely used in the stage, it came in handy for wending his way through the gaggle of team staff and journalists. (Image credit: Will Jones)
Here's the curious thing... In the early season PEdersen, like the rest of the team, were conspicuously using prototype Pirelli tyres, set up tubeless. Now that these have been released, Pedersen has switched back to the old Pirelli P-Zero Race tyres, which aren't tubeless, and is running them with (presumably) latex tubes. My only guess is that he valued the added puncture protection in the early season over the cobbles, and wants to maximise his wattage now - latex tubes are slightly faster than tubeless. (Image credit: Will Jones)
Whatever it is, as a bike nerd I do like the look of it. It's got a purposeful stance, but without the all-out aero of the current Madone. (Image credit: Will Jones)
The IsoFlow hole in the seat tube remains. It's likely, in combination with the aero bottles blocking off the lower half of the frame, that it's even more effective now. (Image credit: Will Jones)
For an aero cockpit the bars are remarkably narrow right up until they join the stem. (Image credit: Will Jones)
There's room for more rubber up front. Given this will likely be used in the Classics next year expect it to have clearance for at least 32c tyres. (Image credit: Will Jones)
A short nose saddle for the Danish fast man. (Image credit: Will Jones)
The curve of the drops is as per the current cockpit too. (Image credit: Will Jones)
Integrated cockpits lack the lovely length notation that made our lives so easy. I think this is about 120mm long though. (Image credit: Will Jones)
The IsoFlow hole effectively turns the seat post into a cantilevered setup, meaning that bend has to bear the entire weight of the rider, plus handle any bumps that multiply that force. (Image credit: Will Jones)
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Will joined the Cyclingnews team as a reviews writer in 2022, having previously written for Cyclist, BikeRadar and Advntr. He’s tried his hand at most cycling disciplines, from the standard mix of road, gravel, and mountain bike, to the more unusual like bike polo and tracklocross. He’s made his own bike frames, covered tech news from the biggest races on the planet, and published countless premium galleries thanks to his excellent photographic eye. Also, given he doesn’t ever ride indoors he’s become a real expert on foul-weather riding gear. His collection of bikes is a real smorgasbord, with everything from vintage-style steel tourers through to superlight flat bar hill climb machines.
