New Cannondale time trial bike ridden by Rigoberto Uran at Volta a Catalunya

For his time trial at Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, Rigoberto Urán was aboard what looks to be an all-new Cannondale time trial bike. 

Unlike his teammates who took to the course on the existing Cannondale-branded SuperSlice, the Colombian was aboard a blacked-out frameset with various differences throughout, including disc brakes, hidden cables, and a sloping top tube.

• Best time trial bikes: TT and triathlon bikes to help you cheat the wind

Image 1 of 2

Comparing the bike ridden by Hugh Carthy to that of Urán, the most notable differences come at the seat cluster area of the frame. 

The seat tube itself is noticeably deeper and straighter on Urán's new bike, whereas on Carthy's bike the seat tube wraps around the rear wheel much more tightly, continuing into a point above the rear wheel. As a result, the seatpost is also deeper, which will no doubt benefit aerodynamics, but instead of being perfectly vertical, it is now angled rearward. However, Urán has actually offset this by using an aggressively lay-forward seatpost design. 

The head tube is also an area where the new bike differentiates itself. It looks to be deeper, and whereas on Carthy's bike the frame steps down to fill the gap behind the fork crown, there's no such thing on Urán's bike, leaving a clear gap in this area. The down tube is also deeper in profile, and as straight as a rule. The down tube on Carthy's bike features a curved indent that wraps around the front tyre, whereas on Urán's bike, the down tube is positioned further away from the front wheel - a symptom of the deeper head tube - meaning no indent is required. 

Following all the recent bike industry trends, the new bike was also fitted with disc brakes, with all cables hidden inside the frame. Despite a disc-brake SuperSlice being in existence and available to the team, Carthy's bike is a rim brake option with the front brake cable exposed to the wind. 

Aside from the new frame, all of the components used were familiar, sponsor-correct and matched that of his teammates. Vision's Metron tubeless wheels were fitted, with the disc-brake disc wheel out back paired with an 80mm front. The stop and go came courtesy of the ever-present Shimano Dura-Ace R9170 groupset, complete with CeramicSpeed OSPW. 

Despite new Wahoo Speedplay pedals launching recently, Urán was still using the yellow cleats from Speedplay of old, however, it's unconfirmed as to whether the pedal body itself was old or new. 

Cyclingnews predicts the bike will be a replacement of the SuperSlice, the name applied to the current time trial bike in Cannondale's range, although as yet, there's no mention of a new model on the UCI list of approved frames. 

We reached out to Cannondale for further information, to which the brand's Global Media Relations Manager, Massimo Alpian, confirmed the bike is indeed from Cannondale:

"The bike Rigoberto Uran was riding is a Cannondale," Alpian confirmed. "Our heritage is rich with new innovation and that continues today and while I can’t specify the model right now, we hope to be able to sometime soon."