Alberto Contador and Ivan Basso’s Aurum releases Magma V2

Aurum, the bike brand belonging to Grand Tour winners Alberto Contador and Ivan Basso, has released the second version of its Magma road bike.

The Magma was Aurum’s first bike that was unveiled at the same time that the company launched in 2020, and the second iteration of the bike has received the aero treatment. In reality, the bike was already designed to be aero but Aurum says it has taken things to the next level through the latest design, which it says leads to some notable savings.

Usually these savings would be driven by the design of the frame and that is the case here, with the latest frameset saving a claimed seven watts over its predecessor when riding at 45kph. However, it’s the new integrated cockpit that has brought the biggest leap in performance, leading to a larger claimed saving of 10 watts.

The aero gains have also been joined by an improved stiffness-to-weight ratio and enhanced integration, in what Aurum has described as the “evolution of excellence”.

Read more: Shimano electrifies 12-speed GRX range with new Di2 gravel groupset

CFD testing leads to 17-watt savings

Used by UCI ProTeam Polti Kometa, including at the recent Giro d’Italia, the Magma is a race-focussed bike and Aurum has attempted to make it even faster through the latest changes – going a step further, it says it was designed and developed “with the idea of ​​being the fastest bicycle on the market”.

As is the norm for most brands, that development process involved lots of CFD (computation fluid simulation) testing, which in turn led to the revised design. While some of these changes can be seen at the rear of the bike in the form of the NACA airfoil profiles of the seatpost, seat tube and seatstays, it’s at the front of the bike where the biggest gains have been made.

That isn’t too surprising as the front of a bike takes the brunt of the wind and is the area where the biggest aero gains can be made, which is leading to a trend towards narrower and deeper head tubes. Aurum has followed suit through a deeper, tapered head tube. The fork also has a wider-stance crown, something that is common on track bikes, although the Magma doesn’t get anywhere near track-level widths.

All of these changes lead to a claimed seven-watt saving when the new frameset is compared to the outgoing model, when both are specced with the same components. This figure takes a big leap, though, when the new integrated handlebar is added to the equation, leading to an overall saving of 17 watts.

It’s achieved through a combination of an aero carbon monocoque design plus full integration with no cables in sight, which on a visual level provides a sleek aesthetic, but Aurum says it leads to some significant performance gains too. The new cockpit is only compatible with electronic shifting and not mechanical alternatives.

Read more: Brand new SRAM RED AXS claims to be the lightest electronic groupset on the market

Improved stiffness-to-weight ratio

Beyond the aero gains, Aurum says the Magma has taken performance leaps in other areas too, most notably through an improved stiffness-to-weight ratio.

This performance is driven through the frame’s carbon construction, which is made from six different types of carbon fibre. The laminate layout for the tubes varies per frame size, as “different lengths and sizes of tubes require different grades of carbon and number of layers.”

It has also led to some minor weight savings with a 54 frame size clocking in at a very respectable 780g. That’s competitive with most climbing frames but the Aurum is designed to be more of an all-round race bike, and this versatility is also reflected in the increase in tyre clearance up to 35mm.

In a move that will please many, the bike also uses a T47 threaded bottom bracket.

The frame is available in five sizes, either 48, 51, 54, 56 or 58, and in two colours, either gloss carbon black or arctic white.

Prices for complete builds start from €8,099, while the frameset is available for €4,499.

Explore the new Magma V2 on Aurum’s website.

Keep up to date with the latest tech news on the GCN website.