The all-new 3T RaceMax2 Italia takes 3T’s original gravel race bike template and adds fully revised geometry, more tyre clearance and lower drag.
The RaceMax2 Italia sports a steeper head angle, longer fork offset and increased bottom bracket drop than the previous incarnation.
This is combined with super-short 420mm chainstays. That’s the shortest I’ve seen on a bike with tyre clearances of 50mm or more.
The new geometry is intended to make the new RaceMax2 much more of an all-road all-rounder, with a road-steep 71.5-degree head angle, 74-degree seat angle, low stack and long reach.
3T says the aerodynamic improvements to the new RaceMax make it the brand's fastest gravel bike yet.
Less drag, more speed
Alongside the new geometry is a frameset with all-new aerodynamics. At the front end, a fresh head tube design combines a pointed front nose and elongated tail. It’s a design feature more common to the latest aero road bikes, such as our current race bike of the year, the Cervélo S5.
Even the fork dropouts have seen aero optimisation, with a caliper bolt cover smoothing the fork's leading edge, and there’s no thru-axle hole in the fork on the driveside.
The front end is completed with a combination of 3T’s aerodynamic More stem and Aeroghiaia aero-gravel bar.
3T says it will also have updated cockpits built to suit the Racemax2 early next year.
The down tube is massively oversized at 75mm. This enables it to fully shield a bottle mounted there.
The down tube also features a wheel cutout on the underside, behind the fork, with a new, large storage port with two positions for the bottle cage on the Fidlock magnetic mini-hook locking cover.
Inside is a custom storage bag made for 3T by Miss Grape.
At the rear end, the aero-profile seat tube features a wheel cutout, which helps keep the chainstays short.
The lowered seatstays meet the seat tube via an aerodynamically sculpted junction. It’s topped by an aerodynamic seatpost that incorporates a clip-in rear light.
Despite the short stays and aerodynamic optimisation, the RaceMax2 is compatible with both 1x and 2x drivetrains, with a maximum chainring size of a whopping 52 teeth.
3T claims this has given the RaceMax2 a 1.5% aerodynamic improvement over the previous RaceMax Italia – previously the brand's fastest gravel bike. That may be a small gain, but when you factor in it’s with a 50mm tyre, it's quite the achievement.
Less weight, more speed
Even with the aerodynamic overhaul and increased tyre clearances, 3T has managed to shave a few grams. The frame remains the same at a claimed 990g. This rises to 1,050g when you include the Miss Grape internal storage bag.
The fork loses 5g down to a claimed 380g for a size-medium frameset.
3T claims weights as low as 7.9kg for a complete bike (SRAM Red XPLR, Zipp 303 XPLR).
3T RaceMax2 Italia GRX Di2 spec details
My sample test bike tips the scales at 9.21kg (56cm/L including storage bags, integrated rear light and 2x bottle cages).
The bike comes equipped with Schwalbe’s 45mm G-One RS Pro tanwall tubeless tyres wrapped around 3T’s own Discus 45/40 LTD wheelset. That's surprising for a brand that pioneered 1x drivetrains on the road and for gravel.
This model comes with Shimano’s 2x GRX Di2. The pairing of a 48/31 chainring and a 12-speed Ultegra 11-34 cassette should give a usable range for trail and road.
The bike is finished with 3T’s dedicated aero-shaped carbon seatpost with integrated rear light. That’s topped by Fizik’s 3D-printed version of the classic Antares saddle.
Up front, it’s the combination of 3T’s More stem and Aeroghiaia gravel bar.
At first glance, the RaceMax2 combines its compact wheelbase with steep angles, making it look far more like a fast all-road take on gravel.
It's more similar to the similarly priced Cervélo Áspero 5 than a trail and technical-capable bike such as Parlee’s Taos.
I’ll have a full test of the RaceMax2 Italia as soon as I’ve had a chance to get plenty of miles in on it.
| SIZE | S | M | L | XL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rider height* (CM) | 157-171 | 168-180 | 176-186 | 183-195 |
| Rider height* (IN) | 5'2"-5'8" | 5'6"-5'11" | 5'9"-6'1" | 6'0"-6'5" |
| Stack | 547 | 569 | 589 | 609 |
| Reach | 367 | 377 | 385 | 393 |
| Head tube angle (degrees) | 70,5 | 71,5 | 71,5 | 71,5 |
| Fork axle-crown (mm) | 383 | 383 | 383 | 383 |
| Head tube length (mm) | 138 | 152 | 173 | 197 |
| BB drop (mm) | 79 | 79 | 79 | 76 |
| Seat tube angle (degrees) | 74 | 74 | 74 | 74 |
| Seat tube length (mm) | 463 | 491 | 510 | 537 |
| Top tube length (mm) | 522 | 538 | 552 | 566 |
| Front Center (mm) | 609 | 607 | 622 | 636 |
| Rear Center (mm) | 420 | 420 | 420 | 420 |
| Wheelbase (mm) | 1017 | 1015 | 1029 | 1045 |
3T RaceMax2 Italia range and pricing
Framesets
- Racemax² Italia with 3T More stem and 3T Aeroghiaia Integrale LTD handlebar: £4,425 / $6,499 / €4,917
Complete bikes
- Racemax² Italia with Shimano GRX 2x12 and 3T Discus 45|40 LTD wheels: £7,303 / $10,999 / €8,114
- Racemax² Italia with SRAM Force XPLR AXS 1x13 and 3T Discus 45|40 LTD wheels: £7,304 / $11,699 / €8,115
- Racemax² Italia with SRAM Force XPLR AXS 1x13, Torno Wide crank and 3T Discus 45|40 LTD wheels: £7,745 / $11,699 / €8,605
- Racemax² Italia with SRAM Red XPLR AXS 1x13 and ZIPP 303 XPLR SW wheels: £9,368 / $13,899 / €10,409
- Racemax² Italia with SRAM Red XPLR AXS 1x13 with Torno Wide Crank and ZIPP 303 XPLR SW wheels: £9,368 / $14,399 / €10,409
- Racemax² Italia with Campagnolo Super Record 2x13 Gravel and 3T Discus 45|40 wheels: £9,662 / $14,599 / €10,736
