We need to talk about motor doping – GCN Tech Show

Alex Paton and Ollie Bridgewood are back in the studio for the latest edition of the GCN Tech Show, and this week they have one of professional cycling’s most controversial topics on their minds: motor doping.

It’s something that crops up every now and again, usually when a new video emerges supposedly showing a phantom wheel spinning of its own volition. Yet, despite a minor fixation on it, only one professional rider has ever been found guilty of motor doping, when Femke Van den Driessche was caught with a motor in her bike at the 2016 under-23 women’s Cyclo-cross World Championships.

It isn’t too surprising that Van den Driessche remains the only case of motor doping, as the idea of riders powering around roads and cyclo-cross fields with a motor whirring around in their bikes seems inconceivable. Yet, as discussed in this week’s show, it may not be quite as far fetched as you may think.

Naturally, the idea of motor doping conjures up images of a giant e-bike motor lodged into a bottom bracket or hub, but it’s believed in some circles that a much smaller device could be hidden in a hub. This would provide between 5 to 50 watts of assistance, which is tiny compared to an e-bike, but would be significant in a professional race. For context, five watts more power would help a pro to climb Alpe d’Huez faster than if they shed 1kg of weight.

All of this is of course speculation, as Alex and Ollie point out, with no proof that such devices exist. However, it wouldn’t be too hard to avoid detection for much of the season, as checks aren’t carried out at every race.

So, is motor doping possible in professional racing? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Read more: Amateur cyclist charged by police after suspected motor doping and hit-and-run on race director

Hot and spicy tech

Moving beyond the world of rumours to something much more tangible in the form of the hottest and newest tech from the last week, starting with a new Shimano Di2 GRX gravel groupset.

Shimano has unveiled an electronic Di2 version of its 12-speed GRX groupset. A 12-speed version of GRX was only released last year, but that was mechanical only.

The new offering is only available in a 2x set-up, but it has become the first groupset in the GRX line-up to use a semi-wireless set-up.

In case you missed it, SRAM released the latest version of its Red AXS groupset last week, although it wasn’t much of a surprise having been spotted multiple times this year.

The new groupset includes auxiliary buttons that can be used to operate other devices, like a computer. Wahoo has since confirmed that its computers will be compatible with the new buttons.

Read more: Wahoo partners with SRAM to bring new AXS functionality to Roam and Bolt computers

Goodyear has unveiled new Vector tyres that are optimised specifically for Zipp wheels.

The range includes the Vector R Z30 NSW, which is optimised for use with Zipp’s 353 NSW wheelset, while the Vector R Z30 SW and R Z35 SW tyres are tailored for the Zipp 303 Firecrest rims.

Read more: New Goodyear Vector tyres are optimised specifically for Zipp’s wheelsets

British company Swytch Technology has unveiled a conversion kit that costs only £299.

It mounts to the front hub but we won’t give away too much here as we’ll be releasing a video soon with all of the details, so keep your eyes peeled for that.

Read more: Swytch releases budget-friendly e-bike conversion kit starting from £299

Bike Vault

A quick reminder here that you can submit pictures of your bike to be judged by our presenters via The Uploader. For more help, check out our guide to using the uploader here.

Once submitted, your bike could earn a super-nice vote, although our presenters are tough judges and expect the highest levels of presentation.

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There are no points for guessing that the owner of this Ridley Noah Fast lives in Belgium, and what a bike it is, set up with a 1x SRAM Red groupset

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This picture was taken midway through the owner's first century ride, and they couldn't have picked a better bike for the job in the form of Canyon's Endurace

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This Merida Scultura was snapped outside the Goodwood race track in the UK

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We suspect the owner of this Bianchi is trolling our presenters, but if not, a quick reminder to always take pictures of the drivetrain-side of your bike

Keep up to date with all the latest tech news and development via our dedicated tech section on the GCN website.