There’s really no definite way to prove which downhill mountain bike is best for racing because it depends so much on the rider, the track and the conditions. In fact the closest metric we have is the UCI’s team standings. We know it’s far from perfect, but it’s all we have to go off.
So here are the World’s fastest downhill bikes (according to the UCI)
Mondraker Summum
Mondraker actually has two teams inside the top ten ranking, MS and Voul Voul Racing. With Florent Payet, Marine Cabirou and Rudy Cabirou on board, Voul Voul claims it has the smallest budget on the circuit.
Team: MS Mondraker Team
Riders: Danny Hart, Laurie Greenland, Markus Pekoll
Best result: 3x win – Danny Hart
Trek Session
Rachel Atherton’s perfect season ensured that Trek was right up there in the standings. Despite disappointing seasons, Gee and Taylor Vernon helped make them the top ranked team at three events.
Team: Trek Factory Racing DH
Riders: Rachel Atherton, Gee Atherton, Taylor Vernon
Best result: 7x win – Rachel Atherton
Polygon Colossus
The Polygon UR team had a great season aboard the Colossus bike. Mick and Tracey both podiumed early in the season and Alexandre Fayolle came in to his own late in the year.
Team: Polygon UR
Riders: Tracey Hannah, Mick Hannah, Alexandre Fayolle, Andrew Neethling
Best result: 4x 2nd – Tracey Hannah
Specialized Demo 8
Our Downhill Bike of the Year only manages fourth in this list but in fairness Loic Bruni was out injured for most of the season, think what could have happened were he fit. Brosnan’s Specialized team also finished 11th.
Team: Specialized Gravity powered by SRAM
Riders: Loic Bruni, Loris Vergier
Best result: 1x win – Loic Bruni
Commencal Supreme
Commencal was also a brand struck by injury as Myriam Nicole emerged as a real challenger to Atherton but too late in the year.
Team: Commencal/Vallnord
Riders: Remi Thirion, George Branningan, Myriam Nicole
Best result: 2x 3rd – Myriam Nicole
Saracen Myst
It wasn’t the strongest year for the Madison Saracen team but they still managed to take the Myst to sixth place in the overall standings.
Team: Madison Saracen Factory Team
Riders: Manon Carpenter, Matt Simmonds, Marc Beaumont
Best result: 4x 3rd – Manon Carpenter
Santa Cruz V10
It was a similar story for the Syndicate this year who also weren’t at their best. Although they were the top team in Fort William – a nice send off for Peaty.
Team: Santa Cruz Syndicate
Riders: Greg Minnaar, Josh Bryceland, Steve Peat
Best result: win – Greg Minnaar
Pivot Phoenix
Bernard Kerr’s breakthrough season was complemented by Emile Siegenthaler’s consistency to keep the Phoenix flying high in eighth.
Team: Pivot Factory Racing
Riders: Bernard Kerr, Eliot Jackson, Emile Siegenthaler
Best result: 4th place – Emile Siegenthaler
Yt Tues
Gwin’s first season on the YT Mob may have brought him the overall title but with only one rider consistently scoring points they slipped to ninth in the team competition.
Team: The YT Mob
Riders: Aaron Gwin, Angel Suarez
Best result: 2x win – Aaron Gwin
Transition TR500
Tahnee Seagrave is the only senior rider on the Transition Transition Factory Racing/FMD team and her points alone were enough for twelfth in the overall.
Team: Transition Factory Racing/FMD
Riders: Tahnee Seagrave
Best result: 3 x 2nd – Tahnee Seagrave
Click here to see the full UCI team rankings.
