Cervélo has officially launched its new R5 lightweight climbing bike today. The new bike in its top spec weighs in at a superlight 5.97kg in the top SRAM RED and Shimano Dura-Ace builds, comfortably making it one of the world's lightest production road bikes.
The R5 has been competitive as one of the best lightweight road bikes for a long time now in various forms, and can trace its roots back to older Cervélo models such as the R2.5. This latest version seems to have had a singular vision in mind: To make the lightest possible race bike that could still deal with the power of a WorldTour athlete. We spotted Matteo Jorgensons then unreleased R5 at the Tour de France back in July.
According to Cervélo, it's easy to make a light bike that's comfortably under the UCI 6.8kg (R5's being raced in UCI races will need to be above the 6.8kg minimum), something that has been relatively easy to do for a while with certain components.
A top spec R5 can easily weigh less than 6kg (Image credit: Cervelo)
As mentioned in the headline of this piece, a size 56cm R5 frame weighs in at a claimed 651 grams, which is very light for a 56cm road frame. The fork, meanwhile, weighs a claimed 298 grams, though we assume for a steerer cut to an appropriate length.
The changes largely focus on dropping weight, which is refreshing in late 2025, given the prominence and popularity of all-out aero race bikes now. The lightest bike possible is still a requirement, it seems, for pro riders on certain terrain and at certain speeds. For the rest of us, aero is nearly always king, but who doesn't find a superlight bike exciting?
The frame and fork together weigh 100g less than the previous generation, and there has been a 326 gram saving in the Cervélo proprietary components over the previous generation bike, which at face value looks very similar to this one, with its easy-to-spot pencil-thin seat stays in particular.
Geometry matches that of the brand's aero race bike, the S5, which also got updated this summer; a point that must make life easier for Team Visma - Lease A Bike riders and mechanics. It may well also save less poring over geo charts for potential customers.
One thing that has changed is a 2mm drop in BB height to account for the 29mm tyres that the team tends to race on. Larger volume tyres will increase a bike's standing height, for want of a better description.
It is worth noting, though, that all bikes will ship with 26mm Vittoria Corsa Pro Speed tyres – smaller-sized tyres, but very fast ones. It may be worth picking up another set of all-rounders and saving the super-fast Pro Speed rubber for best, but we admire the spec choice!
A new UCI legal integrated bar and stem named the HB18 also comes with the R5. Saving 150 grams from the previous and dropping a claimed 2 watts in aero drag. 15 different size options will be available, and Cervélo retailers will help customers choose the correct size for them at no additional cost, a refreshing choice considering the frustration incorrect stem and bar sizing can cause people.
Finally, new Reserve wheels have also been developed for the bike. The Reserve 34 / 37 SL wheelset drops a further 60 grams thanks to a refined layup.
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R5 framesets including handlebars and seatposts are available (Image credit: Cervelo )
This is the black / white paint scheme (Image credit: Cervelo )
And the black / gold (Image credit: Cervelo )
The new R5 will be available as a frameset only or in five separate build options and two paint options: black / bronze and black / silver.
Specs include SRAM Force and Red AXS builds, including a Red 1X version, and Ultegra and Dura-Ace Di2 builds from Shimano.
A frameset will retail at $6,500 / £5,000 / €5,699, and complete bikes will start at $9,950/ £8,500 / €8,999 for an SRAM Force AXS model and rise to $14,250 / £11,000 / €12,999 for an SRAM Red AXS bike.
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Tom joined the Cyclingnews team in late 2022 as a tech writer. Despite having a degree in English Literature he has spent his entire working life in the cycling industry in one form or another. He has over 10 years of experience as a qualified mechanic, with the last five years before joining Cyclingnews being spent running an independent workshop. This means he is just as happy tinkering away in the garage as he is out on the road bike, and he isn’t afraid to pull a bike apart or get hands-on with it when testing to really see what it’s made of.
He has ridden and raced bikes from an early age up to a national level on the road and track, and has ridden and competed in most disciplines. He has a keen eye for pro-team tech and enjoys spotting new or interesting components in the wild. During his time at Cyclingnews, Tom has already interviewed some of the sport's biggest names including Mathieu van der Poel, Tadej Pogačar and Alberto Contador. He's also covered various launches from brands such as Pinarello, Ridley, Specialized and more, tackled the Roubaix Challenge sportive aboard his own rim-brake Cannondale SuperSix Evo, tested over 20 aero helmets in the wind tunnel, and has created helpful in-depth buying advice relating to countless categories from torque wrenches to winter clothing.
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