It’s not often that you see the words “elegance” and “rebellion” in the same sentence, but Peter Sagan isn’t your typical rider. He’s constantly breaking the mold of what’s possible from a bike racer, and does so in a way that makes it look easy—and it’s these characteristics that inspired the Sagan Collection. It takes these traits and, through some heavy design collaboration, transforms them into a collection of products that'll help you find your own World Champion stripes.

In order cut some grams from the Specialized Tarmac, but to also ensure that it's stiff and compliant in exactly the right places, Specialized took major steps to improving their Rider-First Engineered technology. From different layup schedules and materials, to visibly different forks, Specialized scrutinised every single aspect of the Tarmac to ensure you're getting the perfect ride. With this revamp, Specialized also updated the geometry, basing it on countless Retül data points and professional rider input. This enabled them to develop a Performance Road Geometry that perfects the combination of a responsive front-end and short wheelbase, which delivers instantaneous response and optimal power transfer.

And while stiffness aids in the aforementioned, compliance must also be utilised for an optimal ride quality. That's why Specialized dropped the seatstays, and altered the seat tube shape. They also added tyre clearance up to 30mm. This allows lower pressures for decreased rolling resistance, increased traction, and more comfort. Altogether, these additions still have the Tarmac riding like a true race-machine, but it also takes a bit of the sting out of road imperfections. You'll thank them on your next long ride.

But why disc brakes? The real question is "why not?" They offer superior braking power and modulation, work exceptionally well in wet weather, and offer a very, very minor weight addition. All this means that you have more control and can go faster with more confidence.

Specialized also know, however, that aerodynamic improvements are the most important thing they can do to make you faster. Bora-Hansgrohe and Quick-Step Floors Pro Tour riders, after all, are demanding aero improvements on every bike. With this, the aero goal was to discover where Specialized could essentially "add aero for free," by not taking anything away from the hallmarks of the Tarmac design. During the six-month iterative process, three areas were discovered where they could do this—a new fork shape and dropped seatstays with aero tubes.

This Tarmac comes with a no-fuss spec that includes Shimano Ultegra mechanical shifting, quick-stopping hydraulic disc brakes, durable DT R470 Disc wheels.

- Featuring Specialized Rider-First Engineered design that ensures every frame size has the same legendary climbing responsiveness and descending prowess you'd expect from a Tarmac. The FACT 9r frame is the perfect blend of value and performance.

- Shimano's no-fuss Ultegra shifting with hydraulic disc brakes provides precise shifting and plenty of stopping power.

- DT R470 Disc wheels feature reliable, sealed cartridge hubs, and 24 front and rear spokes that keeps weight low and durability high