BMC Teammachine R: what five years of Formula One collaboration looks like

BMC has finally launched the all-new Teammachine R. The latest iteration of the Swiss brand's race bike was first sighted at the Critérium du Dauphiné earlier this year with an unbranded #Createspeed livery.

Now though, the bike is on sale for those who have a spare €14,999 available. BMC has continued its collaboration with Red Bull Advanced Technologies to make a "huge step in performance" with the new race bike, which is said to go far beyond aerodynamics.

It's been over three years since the release the last BMC Teammachine SLR01 TWO, and it is safe to say plenty has changed since then.

The frame profiling has received a total redesign, with the Teammachine R seemingly moving slightly further in the direction of aerodynamics — not surprising given the five-year partnership with Red Bull Advanced Technologies (RBAT). Among others, BMC has worked with RBAT to perform extensive computational fluid dynamics testing on the new bike.

The big change visually iss the all-new 'Halo Fork', which has a distinctive look. The fork legs sit much further apart than commonly seen on race bikes, which BMC says allows turbulent air to be shuttered away from the frame, ultimately improving efficiency.

The fork also protrudes somewhat in front of the frame — something we have seen more exaggerated previously on the Colnago TT1. 

BMC has taken full advantage of the relaxed UCI ruling on frame profiles, opting for a notably deep kamm-tail-shaped head tube, reminiscent of the new Scott Foil RC. The new head tube is narrower too, in an attempt to further decrease the bike's frontal area and, BMC says, make the Teammachine more effective at a wider range of yaw angles.

It's a similar story at the rear end withBMC opting for sleeker integration around the rear wheel. The new machine also features even more dropped seat stays, often an easy compliance win for stiffer race bikes.

The Swiss brand has also kept a hold of the integrated bottle cage. 'R' stands for race, and as this bike needs to be quick with bottles, BMC has retained the downtube cage to further improve frame aerodynamics in real-world conditions.

Alongside the aerodynamic improvements, BMC has also been busy working on the new race bike's carbon layup. A redesigned bottom bracket area is said to be more efficient in the wind tunnel whilst also increasing stiffness, making for the 'best power transfer BMC has ever created'.

As for weight, BMC claims a frame weight of 910 grams for a size 54, coupled with a 345 gram fork. Full builds come in as low as 7.0 kg — just above the UCI's 6.8 kg minimum weight limit.

The other side of the RBAT collaboration is the 'Ride Feel' ethos. BMC says the collaboration has applied the philosophy of driver and car working together as one to the cycling world, aiming to build a predictable handling bike. This cooperation is something Stefan Christ, Head of R&D at BMC, says the company needed in order "to keep pushing boundaries and make this huge step in performance.”

The Teammachine R is available in a total of five different spec levels, starting at €5,999/$5,999 with the Teammachine R 01 MOD, which uses a different carbon layup.

The Teammachine R Four and Three are available with Ultegra Di2 and SRAM Force AXS and costs €8,999/$9,199 and €9,499/$9,499 respectively.

Shimano's Dura Ace Di2 can be found on the Teammachine R Two, which costs €13,999/$14,499, while the range-topping Teammachine R LTD features Sram's Red Etap AXS and costs €14,999/$14,999.

For more information, visit the BMC website.