SRAM appears to be working on a new cross-country drivetrain, with Nino Schurter's custom Scott Spark at the UCI Mountain Bike World Series in Lenzerheide sporting a Blackbox derailleur and blacked-out crankset.
It appears the new derailleur is using SRAM's GX AXS Transmission architecture, with the battery sitting protected in the UDH mount rather than hanging off the rear on XX SL AXS.
This weekend marked the end of Schurter’s illustrious career, with the Swiss rider choosing to retire at his home venue.
With a career spanning back to 2007, when he turned professional, Schurter has been a dominant force in cross-country mountain biking, winning 36 World Cup races and taking the overall title nine times.
If this were football, it would be like Leonel Messi hanging up his boots, with many regarding Schurter as the GOAT (greatest of all time) in the sport.
In support of one of mountain biking's greatest athletes, Swiss fans were out in full force to cheer Schurter on one last time.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t quite pull off the fairytale ending, finishing in 24th place, but he still crossed the line to a shower of champagne.
New SRAM XC drivetrain
Blackbox is SRAM and RockShox's prototype testing platform, similar to Fox’s RAD development programme.
Under closer inspection, the derailleur appears to share its architecture with the current GX AXS Transmission, with the battery sitting inside the UDH mount rather than hanging out of the rear as seen on the X0, XX and XX SL Transmissions.
The only difference we can see is that the derailleur on Schurter’s bike uses a different cage from that on GX, although it’s hard to tell if this is carbon fibre due to the paintjob.
Elsewhere, the crankset looks very similar to the power-meter equipped version of SRAM's gravel-specific RED XPLR AXS drivetrain.
Whether these are final designs is hard to tell, with SRAM possibly using current equipment as testing mules for new technology.
Either way, it looks as though SRAM has something in the oven.
For his last race, Scott honoured Schurter with a custom bike that shares some of the Swiss rider's story.
There are nods to Schurter’s career throughout the bike, with rainbow stripes and flakes of gold representing his various world championship successes and 2016 Olympic Gold medal.
His SRAM Motive Ultimate brakes combine both, with the levers painted white with stripes and the caliper featuring the red and gold design.
SRAM's Motive brakes were released earlier this year and replaced the Level and Guide line-up, with improved braking power and a shift to mineral oil as braking fluid.
Some have complained that the brakes are heavier than the previous Level options, but this doesn't seem to be holding riders back.
Running through the new derailleur is a custom gold chain that has been stamped with the words 'Nino' and 'Goat'.
Elsewhere on the bike, Schurter is using RockShox suspension in the form of the SID Ultimate fork and SID Luxe rear shock.
Both components are Flight Attendant models, meaning the bike should be able to sense automatically when Schurter needs open suspension for descents, firm suspension for better pedalling and locked-out for smooth sections of the track.
The Scott Spark cleverly hides the rear suspension inside the frame, keeping it safely away from water and dust ingress.
Schurter also uses a Reverb AXS B1 dropper post from RockShox, which is lighter than the previous generation.
The bike rolls on Syncros Silverton carbon rims with DT Swiss 180 hubs booted in Maxxis Aspen ST rubber – well suited to the dry, fast-rolling course.
Carrying on the celebrations, Schurter's custom HT Component pedals commemorate his last world championships win in 2022.
Thanks to Bike Kingdom for supporting us with accommodation and travel for Lenzerheide.
