Trek keep the guessing game going with 'Madone/Émonda' at Critérium du Dauphiné

After recently teasing a new bike on social media during the Giro d’Italia, Lidl-Trek riders have been spotted aboard what appears to be a new edition of the brand’s Madone aero bike at the key Tour de France tune up race, the Critérium du Dauphiné. 

Shots of the bike show the word Madone clearly marked on the top tube. However, Trek is evidently keen to keep the guessing game going, with closer inspection revealing the name Émonda just showing through beneath the white lettering.

Since Trek's climbing focused Émonda hasn't been updated since 2020, whilst the aero Madone had a refresh in 2022, knowledge of cycling's product cycles would suggest the former would be next in line for a renewal. However, when it became clear that a new bike was on the cards, at Cycling Weekly, we placed our bets on a Madone. 

Now that the bike is being ridden at the Tour warm-up race, it looks more and more likely that we're anticipating an aero racer, and perhaps even the end of the Émonda climbing machine.

Other brands, most notably Specialized with the Tarmac SL8, have converged their aero and lightweight bikes, to create one all purpose machine, and it looks as if Trek may be aiming to provide the same for the likes of Mads Pedersen and Tao Geoghegan Hart. 

The new bike still features Trek's 'IsoFlow' tech, a hole in the seat tube which replaced the compliance boosting 'Isospeed' that Trek was so well known for, in the name of improved aerodynamics. 

Of course, it's possible Trek may have applied this tech to its climbing machine. However, the fork legs have a similar depth to the brand’s aero machine and the kink in the downward surface of the bike’s top tube is still present. 

Clearly, whatever name the bike will take, it works - Pedersen rode to victory and claimed the race’s first yellow leader’s jersey aboard the new weapon. 

Having been the source of speculation for several months, it's obvious that this bike is primed to be used by Lidl-Trek riders during the Tour and other major races this season. 

Meanwhile, other brand new bikes have been spotted at the Dauphiné last weekend. This included the new Pinarello Dogma F and a fresh new Canyon Aeroroad.