New Goodyear Eagle F1 R Road Racing Tires go Short-Ply for Lighter, More Supple Ride

Goodyear Bike has overhauled its range of road racing tires for 2023, an update that represents some serious improvements over the previous generation Goodyear Eagle range. Rolling resistance is reduced on account of their new short-ply casing construction, and grip is boosted on account of the new Dynamic | UHP compound that is, as the name suggests, rolled out across the brand’s Ultra High Performance range. That includes the Eagle F1 R and the Eagle F1 SuperSport R.

Goodyear are also updating their three-season tires for 2023, introducing the more budget-friendly Vector Sport while making improvements to the existing Eagle. Full details on all the new Goodyear Road Tires can be consumed herein.

Ben Evans, Commercial Director of Goodyear Bicycle Tires, tells us the new Eagle F1 R and F1 SuperSport R Tires are massively improved over their predecessors. Quoting a data set created by a 3rd party testing facility, he says, “the rolling resistance is decreased by up to 35% and wet grip is increased by up to 19% versus our first-generation Eagle F1 tires”. Oh, and weight is down across the board, too.

Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperSport R

The Eagle F1 SuperSport R is Goodyear’s race-day only, time-trial tire designed to go fast. As a tire of the Ultra High Performance range, it benefits from the new Dynamic | UHP rubber and weighs a claimed 230g in the 700c x 25mm Tubeless Complete. It has no breaker belt; it is constructed from a 150 TPI casing material, prioritizing suppleness and low weight.

The Eagle F1 SuperSport R is available in the following options:

• 700c x 25mm Tubeless Complete
• 700c x 28mm Tubeless Complete
• 700c x 30mm Tubeless Complete
• 700c x 25mm Tube-Type
• 700c x 28mm Tube-Type

Big news for 2023 is the Goodyear’s use of a short-ply casing construction. Where a traditional single-ply tire sees three casing plies on top, and two casing plies at the sides, this new short-ply construction has just one casing ply at the top, and two casing plies at the sides, with a slight overlap at the tread cap and the tubeless liner holding it all together. We are told this has resulted in a more supple tire, thanks to a reduction in material, with improved rolling resistance therefore.

The Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperSport R is available in both a tube-type version and the Tubeless Complete version. The latter is a more robust version of the brand’s Tubeless Ready tires, designed to offer sufficient air retention upon initial inflation to negate the need for tire sealant. Of course, tire sealant is required when the tire is in use, but it doesn’t require quite as much as a Tubeless Ready tire would.

A key component of Goodyear’s updated Tubeless Complete system is the dual-angled bead. Rather than having a rounded bead interfacing with the rim, the bead has two distinct facets which, we are told, helps it settle into the bead socket more easily upon installation of the tire. A “tail piece” that looks a lot like a wayward piece of rubber left over from the manufacturing process, also plays a role; it is intentionally put in there to create additional friction between the rim bed and the tire, ultimately helping to keep air inside the tire. This adds around 1g of weight across the whole bead, a small price to pay perhaps, if initial installation is comparatively easier by its presence. Also notable here is that the rubber positioned around the bead is much sticker than the rubber elsewhere, again maximizing friction at this critical interface.

The Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperSport R retails at £60 ($ 70 USD / 65 €) for the tube-type version, and £65 ($80 USD / 70 €) for the Tubeless Complete.

Goodyear Eagle F1 R

Updated for 2023 is the Eagle F1 R, positioned as their go-to road tire for racers and enthusiasts who are seeking low rolling resistance without compromising balanced wet and dry grip. This one gets a 120 TPI short-ply construction, and is more robust than the time-trial specific SuperSport R, benefiting from a Breaker Belt positioned underneath the tread cap.

This additional layer is created from a rubber-reinforced 150 TPI casing. Goodyear tell us they have been able to add this puncture protection piece while maintaining a supple ride quality thanks to the new short-ply construction.

The Eagle F1 R is available in the following options:

• 700c x 25mm Tubeless Complete
• 700c x 28mm Tubeless Complete
• 700c x 30mm Tubeless Complete
• 700c x 32mm Tubeless Complete
• 700c x 34mm Tubeless Complete
• 700c x 25mm Tube-Type
• 700c x 28mm Tube-Type
• 700c x 30mm Tube-Type
• 700c x 32mm Tube-Type

The Goodyear Eagle F1 R retails at £60 ($70 USD / 65 €) for the tube-type version, and £65 for the Tubeless Complete ($80 USD / 70 €). For context, direct competitors of the Goodyear Eagle F1 R in its Tubeless Complete version would be the $69.95 Continental GP5000 S TR or the £64.99 Schwalbe Pro ONE Tubeless Easy tire.

Goodyear Eagle

The Goodyear Eagle is their mid-tire three-season tire, available in a tube-type version and a Tubeless Ready version in Black or Transparent Wall. This one falls into Goodyear’s High Performance range, and so it gets the new Dynamic | HP rubber, and a 60 TPI construction with the new R:Shield Break Belt. It features a more traditional single-ply construction as opposed to the more supple short-ply construction boasted by the aforementioned Ultra High Performance tires.

The Goodyear Eagle tire is available in the following options:

• 700c x 25mm Tubeless Ready
• 700c x 28mm Tubeless Ready
• 700c x 30mm Tubeless Ready
• 700c x 32mm Tubeless Ready
• 700c x 25mm Tube-Type
• 700c x 28mm Tube-Type
• 700c x 30mm Tube-Type
• 700c x 32mm Tube-Type

These retail at £45 ($55 USD / 50 €) for the Tube-Type, and £50 ($62 USD / € 55) for the Tubeless Ready.

Goodyear Vector Sport

The Vector Sport is a new addition to Goodyear’s line of High Performance tires. It is an Endurance Road tire, offered up as a more affordable version of the Vector 4 Seasons. It has a 60 TPI construction with the R:Shield Breaker Belt for improved puncture resistance, and a thicker tread cap for increased longevity. This one is positioned as a more affordable version of the 120 TPI Vector 4 Seasons.

The Goodyear Vector Sport retails at £48 ($57 USD / 53 €) for the Tube-Type version, and £53 ($65 USD / 58 €) for the Tubeless Ready.

2023 Goodyear Road Tire Claimed Weights

Before you get too hung up on the following, do bear in mind that Goodyear say the weights given below can vary by as much as +/- 7%.

All 2023 Goodyear Bicycle Road Tires are shipping now. Head to the Goodyear website for details on ETRTO.

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