Groupama-FDJ

Rudy Molard

Tech

Pro Bikes

Pro bike: A closer look at Groupama-FDJ's new Wilier Filante SLR

The off-season is always a period of change in the WorldTour peloton, but few teams experienced quite as much tech disruption as 

the French team split with bike sponsor Lapierre over the winter

, although it didn’t come as a total surprise with rumours abounding throughout the season. It means that, for the 2024 season, fans will have to get used to watching the team ride new bikes.

Wilier after the Italian brand stepped into the Lapierre-sized hole

 to supply its Turbine SLR time trial steed and the Wilier Filante road bike, which the team debuted at the recent 

’s bike at the race to see what’s new and what has carried over from the team’s previous Lapierre bikes.

Tour Down Under tech gallery: WorldTour equipment and accessory changes 2024

Far from new to the peloton, the Wilier Filante is a seasoned WorldTour veteran that’s accumulated plenty of experience at the hands of 

 to its line-up, the Italian brand has doubled up to join 

 as the only three brands to sponsor two WorldTour teams.

2024 could also be a big year for the Filante that could see it enter the history books if Astana’s 

 is successful in his bid to break the Tour de France stage win record. Its targets at the hands of Groupama-FDJ are likely to be a little more modest, although it will be piloted by a host of France’s top young talents, including 

The bike itself is technically Wilier’s aero offering, sitting alongside the 0 SLR, but Groupama-FDJ will use it for every race. That’s because the boundaries between bike categories are becoming increasingly blurred as brands are now able to pack both aero and a low weight into one package. 

So, although the Filante is an aero bike, it’s also lightweight - Molard’s version registered at exactly 7kg on our scales which is only slightly above the 6.8kg UCI limit and was one of the lightest bikes we encountered at the race.

This weight saving can partly be explained by the tube profiles which are modest by some aero standards with shallower depths, while Wilier says that the frame was constructed with the same materials and technology as the 0 SLR.

Completing the oft-mentioned performance bingo card, it’s also stiffer with an improved stiffness-to-weight ratio of 12.5%, according to Wilier.

Groupama-FDJ are a team that tends to stay loyal to their brands and they’ve used 

 components for as long as they were teamed up with Lapierre. That won’t change in 2024 as the team’s bikes will once again be specced with the top-tier Dura-Ace groupset. 

For Molard, this consisted of a popular 54/40t chainset combined with a less-popular 11-30t cassette - 11-34t is now the choice of most of the WorldTour pros.

Things became a bit more peculiar with the disc brake rotors, with a previous-generation Ultegra rear disc paired with a previous-generation Dura-Ace at the front. It’s something that we previously spotted on the team’s Lapierre bikes too.

2024 Men's WorldTour bikes: A guide to the bikes, groupsets, and tech of the top-tier teams

Willing to buck trends in other areas of the bike too, Molard’s Filante also had 

 Competition Pro Limited Tubulars. Old-school cycling fans will be rejoicing but it places the team firmly in the ‘outlier’ category in the face of a tubeless WorldTour takeover - at this point the takeover is in the distant past and the set-up is now well established.

Staying loyal to the trend-bucking theme, the tyres were in a 25mm width rather than the 28mm that the majority of teams are now using, and were paired with Shimano’s Dura-Ace C50 wheels, which have depths to match their name.

Tour Down Under tech gallery: New bikes, shoes and custom components

Both the handlebars and the seatpost were Wilier’s home-brand offering, designed for the Filante.

The levers on the handlebars were angled inwards despite the imminent UCI regulations to restrict such set-ups.

Elsewhere, many of the finishing components have carried over from the Lapierre age. This included a 

Will Tadej Pogačar Win The Giro AND The Tour? | GCN Racing News Show

I Took A Recumbent To A Bike Race... This Is What Happened!

This Recumbent Superbike Is Faster Than Your Road Bike! Here's Why...

Experience Vs Power! Can Simon Defeat The World’s STRONGEST Cyclist?

Rudy Molard

Race Program

Rudy Molard's Bikes

Pro bike: A closer look at Groupama-FDJ's new Wilier Filante SLR

Subscribe to the GCN Newsletter