Pirelli Partners With Rogue Racing and Theory Global Enduro Teams

Milan, Italy (June 10th, 2021) – As anticipation builds for the arrival of its Gravity line of MTB tires – being developed in collaboration with former world champion Fabien Barel – Pirelli announces two new partnerships with Rogue Racing Team and Theory Global Enduro Team that will bring tire prototypes to time trial races.  

Rogue Racing is a recognized and consolidated force in the Italian downhill scene. Born in 2013 from the experience gained after years of competition in the motorbike field, in 2014 it also opened its doors to the MTB Downhill sector. With several national successes in various categories, including the Elite category in 2019, the 2021 roster includes Davide Palazzari, reigning Italian DH Elite Champion, who spearheads the Italian DH squad with a number of outstanding performances in the World Cup. He is joined by the young talent Davide Cappello, Italian U17 Champion, who has seen solid results in the Elite Top 10 national ranking. This year, Cappello is debuting in the Junior World Cup.

The Rogue Racing athletes have been testing the new Pirelli tires for some time and are debuting them on the World Cup tracks in Leogang, Austria, this week.

The Italian team has been involved in the new Pirelli project from the outset and was chosen for both its organizational quality and sporting achievements, as well as its high level of technical expertise in the preparation and development of the mechanicals. In fact, they are the only team in Italy to use top-level telemetry measuring instruments and high-tech professional equipment for suspension and brakes (such as, Dyno suspension bench, AIM Logger EVO4S telemetry with sensors on fork and monoshock, front and rear wheel speed, yaw and pitch, and front and rear brake pressure), which are fundamental to tire interaction. The team's methodological approach, based on data acquisition, fits in well with Pirelli’s motorsport approach that the company is pursuing for its cycling products in all areas and categories: from World Tour clinchers and tubulars to the off-road tires of the Gravel and MTB lines.

Gravity prototypes of the new Pirelli tires will also be on the Santa Cruz bikes of the Theory Global development team, which will take on all the trials of the Enduro World Series. The team features a roster of promising young riders: Elite Mens riders Brady Stone (21, NZ), Daniel Self (22, NZ), and Nic Bean (22, USA), Elite Womens rider Julie Duvert (24, FR), and new Theory Junior team member Alexis Icardo (17, FR).

The Theory Global Enduro team was founded to be a talent accelerator, with the aim of researching and forming young talents into top-level riders. Launched in 2020, the team faced its first season in conjunction with the pandemic and, despite difficult circumstances, has already achieved several great results: an EWS Elite stage win in Pietra Ligure (I) with Brady Stone and a top 5 stage win in Zermatt with Julie Duvert, as well as several placings and victories in the New Zealand national circuit.

The Enduro World Series stage is another important step for Pirelli, to verify and consolidate the performance of its prototypes during the long days of competition and on the various terrains offered by the world Enduro "circus". Testing the tires using the “stopwatch” test with a variety of surfaces, climates, and riders is a hallmark of the Milan-based company and will showcase the work carried out by Pirelli's team of technicians.

The 2021 season will therefore be the final and most challenging testing benchmark for Pirelli engineers to complete the development of Gravity products and produce a winning tire for 2022.

For further info visit velo.pirelli.com