Gravel goes supersized

The hottest trend in racing is chunky mountain bike tyres, says Simon von Bromley

- Simon von Bromley

Elite gravel racers are increasingly shunning dedicated gravel tyres in favour of wider rubber designed for mountain bikes. Proponents of this trend claim many mountain bike tyres - specifically lightweight options designed for cross-country (XC) racing - are faster than gravel bike tyres, despite the increased weight and aerodynamic drag most would assume they bring with them.

While not everyone is convinced, many racers at The Traka gravel event near Girona in early May told us they were keen to test out mountain bike tyres provided their gravel bikes can accommodate them. It was also a key tech trend at the 2024 Unbound gravel race in the USA, and one we expect to see repeated at this year's event [happening as we go to press].

In the red corner, we have personalities such as Dylan Johnson - a professional bike racer, coach and influential YouTuber. A longtime advocate of wider tyres for gravel racing, Johnson set out his argument in favour of Continental's 2.2in (66mm) Race King XC tyres on his channel earlier this year.