WorldTour bikes and tech: Who's using what in 2021?

Welcome to the Cyclingnews WorldTour bikes guide for 2021: A complete and comprehensive roundup of the 2021 UCI WorldTeams, their bikes and their equipment in the upcoming cycling season. 

We're all aware that the 2020 season was a season like no other. What started off with promise and excitement was quickly curtailed by COVID-19 in the lead up to the Classics. Races were postponed and the five-month hiatus led to a lack of exposure for sponsors. As a result, some teams experienced painful funding cuts, while others chose to go the extra mile to create additional exposure for their sponsors.

But when it finally resumed, the 2020 season didn't disappoint. On the road, we were treated to what many are calling one of the best Tours de France ever, while in the paddocks, the rim versus disc debate was louder than ever, clincher tyres stole the limelight from the tubeless debate, and saving weight was still as important as ever, as teams looked to mountain bike disc rotors to save a few grams. 

But let's put past in the past and look at this season. Plenty of races are still falling foul of COVID, but there's plenty to look forward to. As always, the arrival of a new season means new teams, new sponsors, new bikes and new tech, as well as a likelihood of new trends for us to unravel. 

Bikes

Every few years, the WorldTour has veritable merry-go-round of sponsorship change. At the start of 2019, we saw BMC, Giant and Cervélo all swap as BMC Racing became CCC Team and switched to Giant. Team Sunweb moved from Giant to Cervélo and Dimension Data signed with BMC to complete the triangle. 

This year, a similar triangle involves Bianchi, Cervélo and Scott. Mitchelton-Scott will rename to Team BikeExchange and switch to Bianchi bikes. Jumbo-Visma step away from Bianchi and climb aboard bikes from Cervélo, while Team Sunweb rebrand to Team DSM and their partnership with Cervélo ends, leaving the door open for Scott to step in.

A separate change involves French outfit AG2R-Citröen, who step away from Eddy Merckx bikes in favour of BMC. As a result, Eddy Merckx's brand leaves the WorldTour and BMC's presence in the peloton grows from one team to two, since the Swiss brand is also currently in its third of a three-year deal with Doug Ryder's South African outfit that was recently renamed to Qhubeka-Assos. 

The number of teams in the WorldTour has remained steady at 19, although the makeup of one of those teams has changed significantly. Want You Cycling, the company behind the Circus-Wanty Gobert team has taken over Continuum Sports, the operating company behind CCC Team, and will step up into the WorldTour as a result. With them, they bring Cube Bikes into the WorldTour for the first time in the company's history.

Perhaps more notably, however, is the fact that 2021 will be the first season without a Giant bicycle in the men's pro peloton since 1996.

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Groupsets

Shimano remains fitted to the vast majority of bikes in the peloton, with 13 teams running its Dura-Ace Di2 groupset. SRAM will be used by two teams while Campagnolo has grown by one, and will now be employed by four. 

Ceramic bearings maintain a presence in the sport with both Astana and ISN running the OSPW from Ceramicspeed and Lotto Soudal running C-Bear for another season. 

Other changes

When it comes to computers, Garmin retains its majority presence with nine teams already confirmed, however, Wahoo's ascendency continues and the Atlanta company grabs a bigger slice of the WorldTour pie with two new teams, now up to five. 

Both teams that used SRM in 2020 move elsewhere, with Lotto-Soudal moving away to Garmin and Cofidis opting for Wahoo. Team DSM also switch to Wahoo, but from Sigma computers. 

SRM does retain a presence, though with just one team this year, as UAE Team Emirates make the jump away from Stages. 

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Circus Wanty Gobert, who are to be known in 2021 as Intermarché Wanty Gobert, will be supplied with cycling computers from Bryton, a brand that in 2020 was found on the bikes of Israel Start-Up Nation. Their one-year deal has not been renewed, and instead, Chris Froome's new team will be using Hammerhead this year. 

Just one team is yet to confirm their brand of computers for 2021 so far. Trek Segafredo, who last year used a Garmin rebranded as a Bontrager. Given they've taken this long to announce the news, we expect change is afoot, but as yet, it's unconfirmed. 

What we do know, is that with just one spot up for grabs, either one (or both) of Sigma and Stages will disappear from the handlebars of the WorldTour bikes. 

A change that is confirmed takes us back to the Israel Start-Up team. We're not talking about Alex Dowsett's newborn, but we might see little Juliette wearing babygrows from Jinga Clothing this year on his YouTube channel, as the team switches away from Katusha clothing.

And on the subject of clothing, the newly named Bahrain Victorious will no longer wear Le Col and will instead wear kit from Italian company Nalini. Meanwhile, Team DSM are taking their kit sponsorship into their own hands, launching their own clothing brand called Keep Challenging clothing. 

Want to check out the best kits in the WorldTour this year? Cyclingnews staff have ranked and rated them all, do you agree with our number one?

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AG2R Citröen Team

Bikes: BMC Teammachine SLR01, BMC Warp TT 

Groupset: Campagnolo Super Record EPS

Wheels: Campagnolo

Clothing: Rosti

Saddles: Fizik

Finishing Kit: BMC

Computers: Wahoo

Turbo trainers: TBC

Astana-Premier Tech

Bikes: Wilier Zero SLR, Wilier Filante, Wilier Turbine TT

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 Disc

Wheels: Corima

Clothing: Giordana

Saddles: Prologo

Finishing Kit: Wilier

Computers: Garmin

Turbo trainers: Tacx

Bahrain Victorious

Bikes: Merida Reacto, Merida Scultura, Merida Warp TT

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 Disc

Wheels:  Vision Metron

Clothing: Nalini

Saddles: Prologo

Finishing Kit: FSA, Vision, Prologo

Computers: Garmin

Turbo trainers: Elite

Bora-Hansgrohe

Bikes: Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL7, Specialized S-Works Shiv

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 Disc

Wheels: Roval

Clothing: Sportful

Saddles: Specialized

Finishing Kit: PRO, Specialized

Computers: Wahoo

Turbo trainers: Wahoo

Cofidis

Bikes: De Rosa Merak, De Rosa Pininfarina, De Rosa TT-03

Groupset: Campagnolo Super Record EPS

Wheels: Fulcrum

Clothing: Nalini

Saddles: Selle Italia

Finishing Kit: Errea

Computers: Wahoo

Turbo trainers: Elite

Deceuninck-QuickStep

Bikes: Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL7, Specialized S-Works Shiv

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 Disc

Wheels: Roval

Clothing: Vermarc

Saddles: Specialized

Finishing Kit: PRO, Specialized

Computers: Wahoo

Turbo trainers: Tacx

EF Education-Nippo

Bikes: Cannondale

Groupset: Shimano

Wheels: Vision

Clothing: Rapha

Saddles: Prologo

Finishing Kit: FSA, Vision

Computers: Garmin

Turbo trainers: Tacx

Groupama-FDJ

Bikes: Lapierre (exact models unconfirmed)

Groupset: Shimano

Wheels: Shimano

Clothing: Ale

Saddles: Prologo

Finishing Kit: PRO

Computers: Garmin

Turbo trainers: Elite

Ineos Grenadiers

Bikes: Pinarello Dogma F12 rim, Pinarello Bolide TT

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 Disc

Wheels: Shimano (Lightweight, Princeton Carbonworks are non-sponsored additions)

Clothing: Castelli

Saddles: Fizik

Finishing Kit: MOST

Computers: Garmin

Turbo trainers: Wahoo

Intermarché-Wanty Gobert

Bikes: Cube

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 Disc

Wheels: Fulcrum

Clothing: Santic

Saddles: Prologo

Finishing Kit: Cube

Computers: Bryton

Turbo trainers: Elite

Israel Start–Up Nation

Bikes: Factor

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 Disc (CeramicSpeed OSPW)

Wheels: Black Inc

Clothing: Jinga

Saddles: Selle Italie

Finishing Kit: Black Inc

Computers: Hammerhead

Turbo trainers: Elite

Jumbo–Visma

Bikes: Cervelo R5, Cervelo S5, Cervelo P5

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2

Wheels: Shimano

Clothing: Agu

Saddles: Fizik

Finishing Kit: FSA

Computers: Garmin

Turbo trainers: Tacx

Lotto Soudal

Bikes: Ridley Helium, Ridley Noah Fast, Ridley Dean TT

Groupset: Campagnolo Super Record EPS, C-Bear ceramic bearings

Wheels: Campagnolo

Clothing: Vermarc

Saddles: Selle Italia

Finishing Kit: Deda

Computers: Garmin

Turbo trainers: Tacx

Movistar Team

Bikes: Canyon Ultimate, Canyon Aeroad, Canyon Speedmax

Groupset: SRAM Red eTap AXS

Wheels: Zipp

Clothing: Ale

Saddles: Fizik

Finishing Kit: Canyon

Computers: Garmin

Turbo trainers: Elite

Qhubeka Assos

Bikes: BMC Teammachine, BMC Timemachine Road, BMC Timemachine 

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 Disc, Rotor crankset

Wheels: Hunt

Clothing: Assos

Saddles: Selle Italia

Finishing Kit: BMC

Computers: Garmin

Turbo trainers: Tacx

Team BikeExchange

Bikes: Bianchi Specialissima Disc, Bianchi Oltre XR4 rim, Bianchi Aquila TT 

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 Disc

Wheels: Shimano, Vision

Clothing: Giordana

Saddles: Fizik

Finishing Kit: FSA, Vision

Computers: Garmin

Turbo trainers: Tacx

Team DSM

Bikes: Scott

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 Disc

Wheels: Shimano

Clothing: Team's own (Keep Challenging)

Saddles: PRO

Finishing Kit: Syncros

Computers: Wahoo

Turbo trainers: Elite

Trek–Segafredo

Bikes: Trek Madone, Trek Emonda, Trek Domane, Trek Speed Concept

Groupset: SRAM Red eTap AXS

Wheels: Bontrager

Clothing: Santini

Saddles: Bontrager

Finishing Kit: Bontrager

Computers: TBC

Turbo trainers: Saris

UAE Team Emirates

Bikes: Colnago

Groupset: Campagnolo Super Record EPS

Wheels: Campagnolo

Clothing: Gobik

Saddles: Prologo

Finishing Kit: Deda

Computers: SRM

Turbo trainers: Elite