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Is the Specialized Venge Vias getting a disc brake option?

Written by Tyler Benedict
33 Comments
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Fernando-Gaviria-specialized-venge-vias-disc-brake-bike-02

These pics, snapped by Etixx Quick-Step team rider Fernando Gaviria show what looks very much like a disc brake equipped Specialized Venge Vias. Clues include the use of Shimano’s hydraulic brake levers, the lack of any brake on the fork’s crown and a big thru-axle lever protrusion on the left. These are spread across three pics from his Instagram and Twitter feeds, and the fact that they haven’t been pulled down yet suggest the Big S can’t be too far off on this.

While we haven’t ridden the Vias edition ourselves, we’ve hung around the pro’s pits long enough to hear that the original version’s braking was sub par in favor of maximized aerodynamics. This could be just the fix this bike needs to put its overall performance on par with its astounding aesthetics…

Fernando-Gaviria-specialized-venge-vias-disc-brake-bike-01

All of the photos keep any rotor or caliper just out of view, doing an excellent job of fueling speculation, but the top image that clearly shows the fork without a rim brake caliper leaves few other options.

Fernando-Gaviria-specialized-venge-vias-disc-brake-bike-03

Above, you can see what appears to be a DT Swiss thru axle sticking out the left side, which is odd in that Specialized is almost certainly going to be providing Roval wheels for team use. Could just be the angle, or just what they had laying around the team truck in a pinch.

We’ve reached out to Specialized for comment and will report back as necessary.

Thanks to everyone that sent these links in!
Tyler Benedict
11,282 articles

Tyler Benedict is the Founder of Bikerumor.com, where he’s been writing about the latest bikes, components, and cycling technology for almost two decades. Prior to that, Tyler launched and built multiple sports nutrition brands and consumer goods companies, mostly as an excuse to travel and ride in new places.

Based in North Carolina, Tyler also loves the Vanlife & family adventure travel and is always on the lookout for the next shiny new part and off-grid adventure.

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33 Comments
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boom
boom
8 years ago

I got to ride around the parking lot on a Venge Vias. To say the proprietary rim brakes are sub-par is an understatement. They need to instead be marketed as ‘slowers’. So disc would be awesome for this!
But it would also make it less aero (isn’t that the whole point of this bike?) and weigh even more than it already does. Boooo.

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greg
greg
8 years ago
Reply to  boom

Considering how heavy the Vias brakes are, and all the cable and housing hardware to get them where they need to go, I wouldn’t be surprised if the disc version is lighter. The Tarmac frame is practically the same weight, disc/rim (fork adds some though).
Aero is still up in the air as well. On some bikes tested, disc versions added drag, but others did not. Considering the rim and disc Vias were probably developed concurrently (or thereabouts), I wouldn’t be surprised if the aero difference is a wash as well.

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Collin S
Collin S
8 years ago

Not overly odd re: DT Swiss as several wheel systems from Specialized/Roval has used DT internals.

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Elliot Grove
Elliot Grove
8 years ago

A quality stiff aero frame, with flat mount thru axle road disc?
Well, if this is true, i think i found my replacement road bike.

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Flatbiller
Flatbiller
8 years ago

I think the current Venge’s braking performance needs to be put into perspective: the fact that the brakes aren’t good enough for pros does not mean that they will not be good enough for you.

If you’re reading this (except for @boom, who apparently is pro), pros ride about 43 times faster than you ever will (I’ll include myself as well).

That’s like saying the Bugatti Chiron’s handling above 200MPH should be taken into consideration when you shop for a commuter vehicle.

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Veganpotter
Veganpotter
8 years ago
Reply to  Flatbiller

Regular folks need even better brakes since they aren’t as skilled. This is in part why most pros aren’t interested in disc brakes

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pTymnWolfe
pTymnWolfe
8 years ago
Reply to  Flatbiller

Again with the wisdom, that’s twice in a few days Flabtiller. Good on you. It’s too bad common sense isn’t more common.

Not to mention there are about 17 people on this entire planet who are actually good enough to realistically benefit from the supposed aero advantage of this bike. The irony is lofty claims of free speed and/or time savings and those who pay retail for it are what keep the bike industry going.

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Eric Hansen
Eric Hansen
8 years ago
Reply to  pTymnWolfe

I got 1:03 on my last Olympic distance triathlon on an Allez with 24mm tall crit rims. A VIAS would have taken me from placing in the 30’s into the top ten. I did zero cycling training for the triathlon. That was just my base daily riding around fitness.

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pTymnWolfe
pTymnWolfe
8 years ago
Reply to  Eric Hansen

You just made my point for me. Thank you.

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Allan
Allan
8 years ago
Reply to  pTymnWolfe

And what do you care? I get tired of these posts, which is 100% based in jealousy. Who cares if “some dentist” buys a 10K bike and rides it 3 times a month? Does it bother you that much that someone isn’t “good enough” to benefit from some expensive tech? It’s almost like according to some people, everyone should line up in some huge worldwide race, and depending on your result, determines what bike you are allowed to own. I see comments like this on literally every article about a high end bike. Seriously…stop caring about what people buy with their own money. I’d love to be able to own a superframe bike, but I don’t begrudge anyone who does, regardless of their ability.

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pTymnWolfe
pTymnWolfe
8 years ago
Reply to  Allan

I don’t care or begrudge and certainly not jealous of a pos Vias. I’m simply stating a fact. Disagree if you want but don’t tell me to stop. That’s some petty bs. Merely observing and commenting on it. Relax for second, some people have opinions that may differ from yours.

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MIKE FAELLO
MIKE FAELLO
8 years ago

I own a VIas and the shop I GM is top 4 in Vias sales in the nation. If the brakes don’t work, it’s because the mechanics aren’t setting them up correctly. Yes, they are finicky initially and need to be adjusted properly to work best……Once done, they’re dialed. The main issue is the levers have less power to work with the overpowered 9000 caiipers……..Specialized adjusted the brakes to work off this leverage ratio. However and again, if not properly set up they will feel under powered. In contrast, when set up with Sram or Etap the brakes have mega stopping power.

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comrad
comrad
8 years ago

Specialized has used DT swiss thru axles before on stock bikes… Y’all need to do your research

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jbt
jbt
8 years ago

This is a Venge Vias Disc. On another forum, one of the posters is a Specialized dealer. He or she posted an image of a shipping label from Specialized confirming the contents as a Venge Vias Disc model. What’s more the BIG rumor is that the rotors will be faired with a cover thereby lessening the aero penalty, but as another comment here noted, it’s going to be heavier.

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jbt
jbt
8 years ago

Also, as one commenter above stated, the market for people who could actually benefit from the very small diminishing returns a bike like this garners is exceptionally thin. I’m a fairly strong rider, but I couldn’t possibly show up to a race or the A group ride with this thing. I’d be laughed out of the parking lot. In my mind, it’s kinda like showing up to the beginner or sport mtb race in a skinsuit. If you’re Sagan, sure, ride it and race it. Ironically, even if I had one I wouldn’t get it near an amateur race for fear of ruining it in an errant crash. I’d actually be interested to know if Specialized even make money on these, almost like how Acura lost money on every NSX it ever sold and is planning on doing the same with the new NSX. It’s a halo product created for PR and brand value, a rolling showcase. It’s also interesting that a new Venge Vias is about to be launched less than a year after the new Venge Vias was launched.

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Jason
Jason
8 years ago

I have a standard ViAS. I assembled it, and have a few hundred miles on it so far. I and can tell you a few things about it:

1) Building one of these bikes is a time intensive task. There is a lot of 1 step forward and 2 steps back involved.
2) Setting up the brakes is a laborious process. Read the supplied instructions, and follow them exactly.
3) If you do not follow the steps properly to set up the brakes you will probably end up with some “soft” brakes.
4) However, if you follow the steps perfectly you will end up with a brake set that is on par with Dura Ace 9000.

I have been riding it with Swiss Stop Flash Pro Carbon pads with Easton carbon wheels.

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John
John
8 years ago

“but the top image that clearly shows the fork without a rim brake caliper leaves few other options.”

Fixie? 😉

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Eric Hansen
Eric Hansen
8 years ago
Reply to  John

Someone at the Specialized Columbus warehouse has a Sworx Tarmac single speed “bar bike”. I set up the crank for them.

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a
a
8 years ago

I love all the “I’m not fast so clearly this faster bike will have no market” people. I guess stick with steel, downtime shifters and 10 speeds… the 2 ring/5 cog original version. Regardless of whether this bike sells well or not, aero has real benefits and is interesting to plenty of medium and fast people – if you enjoy slow look elsewhere I guess.

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Rixter
Rixter
8 years ago
Reply to  a

I agree. It would be the same argument that unless you’re a current (or past) F1 driver, there’s no point in buying a nice sports car for pleasure use. Unless you can drive at +200kph on the track, you’ll never be able to fully utilize the features of a top-end sports car.
If people have the cash and they want to buy a nice bike, why not? Good on them. Now if they sit around the coffee shop preening and talking about how fast they are or how great their bike is, and how they are now suddenly able to drop all the CAT 1 riders, that’s a different story.

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mac
mac
8 years ago

“There will never be discs in the pro peloton!”

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Jeff
Jeff
8 years ago

There already are disc brakes in the pro peloton, and in the very near future, there will be lots more. Can figure out why some people are so resistant to disc brakes on the road

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Allan
Allan
8 years ago
Reply to  Jeff

If you are looking for an actual answer, my reasoning is they are FUGLY! Fine for MTB and Cross, but IMO they look bad on road bikes. My bike has direct mount, and I love the minimalist look to them (small weight savings as well). And they have PLENTY of stopping power.

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Kyle
Kyle
8 years ago

Brags about hanging around the pro pits, has no idea that Specialized uses DT Swiss parts.

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Jeff
Jeff
8 years ago

“Can’t figure out why some people are so resistant to disc brakes on the road”

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DRC
DRC
8 years ago

The Roval stickers are blacked out, but clearly visible in the first picture. I can’t wait to see this bike, been waiting for a Venge disc for a while now.

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asdf
asdf
8 years ago

Before everyone gets happy about disc brake venge I need to remind you who this is. It’s specialized. They are going to ruin it with their SCS stupid spacing and thus you will only be able to use guess which wheels? Rovals. So all your zipps, enve’s, insert fancy name wheel here, are useless. Yes I know there are like 1 or 2 companies that have 3rd party rear derailleur mounts or hacked axles to make it work, but it’s not a reliable system. see bike BR’s own discussion about this.
https://bikerumor.com/2015/10/20/2016-specialized-scs-135mm-disc-brake-thru-axle-design-explanation-development-story/
It’s not just the crux either.. It’s all their road oriented disc bikes. crux, diverge, roubaix, tarmac and ruby. I ended up returning my crux because none of my previous wheels work work and they kept saying “zipp is going to make a hub”.. 2yrs later and still no zipp SCS hub. Matter of fact not one manufacturer has jumped on the SCS train even though specialized said they would.

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DRC
DRC
8 years ago
Reply to  asdf

So sell your other wheels? If this bike came with crappy, heavy aluminum wheels, I’d say it was stupid. But no, it comes with light carbon wheels with disc specific rims, so what’s the point in changing them out? I’d be more than happy with the stock Roval wheels. There are 500 other bike companies that you can purchase a bike from and swap out the wheels, why bitch about this one?

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Todd
Todd
8 years ago

How many of you have actually ridden a Venge? I am not a strong rider, but I rode one on a loop I have done many times and came in 2 minutes faster than any time I had ever posted. I didn’t expect that at all.

Maybe you shouldn’t judge something until you have had the chance to ride it.

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Allan
Allan
8 years ago
Reply to  Todd

(deleted)

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pTymnWolfe
pTymnWolfe
8 years ago
Reply to  Allan

Damn dude that one got you all worked up. Maybe some self reflection is in order?

Either way I’ll further explain my point which is this;
In order to fully benefit from the purported aero gains of the vias you’ll need several things to happen. Primarily the body strength, discipline and experience to maintain a single position without major body movement for long periods of time. Even most top level pros can’t do this, let alone amateurs. It also helps dramatically to have wind tunnel testing to define said aero position. This is what I meant when saying they’re about 17 riders good enough who can realistically benefit (i.e.- have the experience, strength and tech support) from this bikes aero claims.

Don’t get me wrong, the Vias looks great, is a good bike and I’m sure does have some aero advantage in the right situation. However if you think that anyone and everyone can hop on and immediately gain 5 min in a TT or jump from 30th to 10th in a tri, you’re sadly mistaken. If this was the situation then every pro tour team that uses a Vias would be crossing the finish line 10 minutes(or more) before the peloton in every event. Obviously that isn’t happening.

Racing is about what you can do, not your bike. I don’t care if you buy one or not, or race it or hang it on your wall. Doesn’t matter one bit to me. Just please don’t be so niave about magically finding yourself at the front end of a race only because you switched to this bike.

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Jeremy Lawrence
Jeremy Lawrence
8 years ago
Reply to  pTymnWolfe

Buying a fast bike is not necessarily about winning races. I doubt if many people buy such a bike for that reason. However when you go for a ride with your mates, you have a bit more of an edge against them, you may get faster Strava times or simply go for a fun ride with less effort.
I’ve got [road] Strava KOMs on my cross bike with 28mm tubeless slick that I couldn’t get on my hardtail mountain bike even with road tyres on. If I got a much lighter faster bike like a disc equipped [non Vias] Venge that I’ve been waiting for for some time now, I know I will get better strava times and maybe a few more KOMs. 🙂

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GMP
GMP
8 years ago

This summer I saw a Venge Vias Disc rolling around Morgan Hill. I have been wondering when it was going to make its debut…

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