Specialized bikes in the pro peloton (2005-2026). Specialized bikes are one of the most prominent in the peloton in 2026. RIDE Media Pty Ltd take a look at the history of the brand in pro cycling... This is huge collections of the bikes from the retrospective series featuring bike brands in the pro peloton. Specialized has been one of the most prolific team sponsors over last 20 years, and this gallery includes 40 bikes that have essentially been raced to victory in the world's biggest races. Often boasting multiple sponsorships each year Specialized is a brand that has also built strong associations, and personal sponsorship arrangements, with numerous world champions over the years including the likes of Tom Boonen, Peter Sagan and, most recently, Remco Evenepoel. In 2026 S-Works bikes were raced by two teams in the men's WorldTour peloton (Soudal-Quickstep and Redbull-Bora-Hansgrohe). The American brand is also a major supporter of women's cycling supplying bikes to multiple teams over the years (although this gallery features only bikes from the men's peloton). This year, Specialized won another Tour de France yellow jersey thanks to one of the brand's most prominent athletes, Demi Vollering - also the world's number-one ranked rider - who is part of the Specialized-sponsored FDJ United-Suez team). The long-standing connection with the Belgian team known as Quickstep-Soudal in recent years is said to be ending after 2026. Next year, the squad that is nicknamed the 'Wolfpack' will compete as 'Soudal-Safety Jogger' and, according to Daniel Benson's overview of changes for the 2027 season, it will be racing on Merida bikes. (It is, of course, worth noting that Taiwanese brand Merida has strong connections with Specialized, including holding a 35% stake in the US company.) Even with the Wolfpack shifting allegiances after a relationship with Specialized for 19 seasons the brand will continue to be prominent in the 2027 season. The agreement with Vollering still has years to run and, as it stands, RIDE Media Pty Ltd can expect to see S-Works bikes continue to be raced by Redbull-Bora-Hansgrohe next year. Specialized early years in the peloton. Although it has a prolific record for supplying bikes to pro teams in recent years, it is a relatively young brand in road cycling. Specialized started supplying top-level teams with bikes in 2000 a sponsorship of the Festina Watches team (below); it was a relationship brokered a couple of years after the scandal that broke before the start of the 1998 Tour de France and the early team frames were still alloy. It was the German sprinter Marcel Wüst who earned Specialized its first stage win in the Tour, in Vitre in the opening week of the 2000 race. The following July, the marque began the TDF with a prologue victory in Dunkirk, and a stint in the yellow jersey for Christophe Moreau. It didn't take long for Specialized to enjoy a flurry of victories in the world's biggest races. The 2002 world championships provide a coup for the brand thanks to Mario Cipollini; the sprinter held off a challenge by Australia's Robbie McEwen in Zolder, Belgium to win the rainbow jersey in the elite men's road race. It was the first of many conquests at the worlds which have also included victories for Tom Boonen, Paolo Bettini, Michal Kwiatkowski, Peter Sagan, Julian Alaphilippe, and Remco Evenepoel. Specialized pro team bikes (2005-2026). The gallery below features bikes from 2005 through to 2026, starting with the S-Works bike raced by Gerolsteiner - another team that would ultimately fall victim to (another) doping scandal... but before its demise the German-registered outfit was used to test the early iterations of the Di2 electronic-shifting groupset by Shimano. From prototype to reality, the groupset has prospered but the team bowed out after Bernhard Kohl and Stefan Schumacher's positive tests for EPO-Cera during the 2008 TDF. That, like many of the other memories that emerge when you look back on over 20 years worth of team bikes, is another story for another time. What becomes clear when you hark back through the archives, however, is that a brand's prominence in the pro peloton doesn't come immediately. Specialized has invested enormous sums to ensure that its backing of cycling teams yields exposure. It began with aluminum frames and an association with a team that was rebuilding from the ashes of a scandal. Since then, the brand has enjoyed plenty of success and the sponsorships have achieved the objectives of putting Specialized's innovation on display. Scroll down the sequence of 40 bikes raced by pro teams (below) and note the sometimes subtle, sometimes extreme changes in the S-Works range.

Specialized launches managed GSOC service at GSX. Three service tiers support full operations, backup coverage and specialized off-site monitoring. * By Danielle Naidu * Sep 16, 2026 At Global Security Exchange 2026 in Atlanta, Specialized introduced a managed global security operations center service for organizations seeking outsourced command-center capabilities. The service can provide the facility, technology and personnel for a primary GSOC, serve as a backup node or handle off-site tasks such as parking lot monitoring, travel tracking and access reviews. Specialized offers three tiers: Rapid with a dedicated operator and the quickest response, Standard with shared coverage and Flexible with the lowest per-site cost. Operations run through AURIX, Specialized's proprietary security operations platform. The company said clients can review performance, training, response times and key performance indicators through the platform. Specialized is demonstrating the service at booth 1304 during GSX, held Sept. 14-16 at the Georgia World Congress Center. Danielle Naidu is assistant editor for Security Today, Campus Security Today, Occupational Health & Safety and Environmental Protection Online. Featured. * Why Executive Data Exposure is Now a Physical Security Problem Exposed personal data online acts as digital reconnaissance for physical attacks, making continuous data removal and threat monitoring essential for executive protection. Read Now * Cybersecurity * Data Security * Corporate * Beyond Detection: 6 Technologies Redefining Commercial Security Modern security systems are shifting from passive event detection to unified, proactive business intelligence platforms. Read Now * Emerging Technologies * Dealers and Integrators * Corporate * How Video Security Is Moving From Alarm Noise To Operator Trust Agentic AI filters out false alerts and handles routine event triage to rebuild operator trust and streamline security workflows. Read Now * Artificial Intelligence * Video Surveillance * Analytics * Going The Distance with Agentic AI on the Edge Agentic AI enables cameras to independently analyze threats, make decisions, and trigger responses locally. Read Now * Artificial Intelligence * Physical Security * Analytics * Smart Cities Start By Bringing Systems Together, Not More Technology Open-architecture unified platforms break down city department silos, transforming disconnected cameras and sensors into actionable real-time intelligence. Read Now * Emerging Technologies * Risk Management * Physical Security

Specialized celebrates 2026 cycling domination with limited edition "Built for Legends" Collection. This lineup of bikes from Specialized covers MTB, downhill, gravel, and road riding and comes in with hand-crafted frame colorways Published: 10 Sep 2026, 19:28 UTC - By: Photo: Specialized Bicycle Components To celebrate Specialized's dominance in the past year across a wide range of cycling disciplines, this brand has unveiled the Built for Legends LTD Collection, a limited-edition lineup of bicycles that are meant to be the peak of what the industry can offer. During 2026, Specialized bikes have gone on to be spotted at the top of countless cycling disciplines, and to celebrate this domination, the biking powerhouse has launched four bikes and two pieces of rider gear to bring the spirit into the hands of those of use that simply want the very best, but in a way that stands out from the rest. From a unique and custom, "hand-buffed" paint jobs to numbered frames and the very best equipment around, all of it has a place in this limited run of two-wheelers. Because of the hand-touched work, no two frames are alike either. Photo: Specialized Bicycle Components According to Specialized's website, the lineup was "Developed alongside the world's best athletes and tested at the highest level, from the Tour de France and World Cup races to the gravel roads of Kansas, each of these bikes has already written its place in racing history with legendary victories." Four disciplines are covered by the bikes, including MTB, road, gravel, and downhill. MTBing is represented by the S-Works Epic 9 LTD, selling for $15,500 (€13,350), and the downhill ride is built on an S-Works Demo 11. The latter is flying off the shelf for $11,500 (€9,900). Road riders can look forward to seeing the unique colorway and limited badging on an S-Works Tarmac SL9, flying off the shelf for a solid $15K (€12,900), and the gravel-destined ride is set on the S-Works Crux 5, crunching gravel at $15K as well. Clearly, these are bicycles aimed at serious riders, much like all of anything with S-Works stamped on the side of a frame. As mentioned, two other pieces of equipment accompany the release. One is a pair of shoes, S-Works' Ares 2, also designed with a matching colorway, going for $570, and the S-Works Evade 4 helmet, selling for $370. A solid way to complete the ecosystem. Photo: Specialized Bicycle Components Names like RockShox bring forth gear like their Flight Attendant suspensions, making adjustments on the fly so all you have to do is ride, SRAM drivetrains with wireless shifting, and wheelsets completed from carbon fiber. This is all peak cycling goodness right here. Components like the brake calipers have seen a unique touch too. All that's built around Specialized's top-tier carbon fiber building block and layup techniques, resulting in bikes that weigh as little as 6.6 kg (14.5 lbs). That number belongs to the Tarmac, and the second lightest is the Crux 5, rolling in with just 0.5 kg more, or 7.1 kg (15.6 lbs) for a size 56 frame. Clearly, the downhill monster is the heaviest, rolling on an 18.3 kg (40.3 lbs) platform for a size S4. The Epic 9 weighs just 9.7 kg (21.4 lbs) for a medium-size frame. If you want in on the unique action, head over to Specialized's website and whip out those checkbooks. Liked the article? Follow Autoevolution to see more articles from autoevolution in your Google feeds.