Vitus Venon EVO-GR Rival AXS 1X review

From the outset, the new Vitus Venon EVO platform was designed to be an endurance bike with the potential to cut it on gravel thanks to the huge (for a road bike) 45mm tyre clearance.

The road-specific Venon EVO-RS was the overall winner of our 2023 Bike of the Year test. However, starting out with a bike that’s very much at the fast end of endurance bike design and geometry carries potential pitfalls when it comes to off-road comfort and handling confidence.

Vitus, however, has done a fine job. It will never be a match for gravel bikes optimised for technical terrain such as the Topstone Lefty or BMC URS LT, but it operates in the same racy regions as the Cervélo Aspero, Specialized Crux, Factor Ostro Gravel and BMC Kaius.

Vitus Venon EVO-GR Rival AXS 1X frame

The Venon’s combination of aero-shaped tubes, FSA ACR internal routing and slick integration hints towards its road-going DNA.

However, clearance for 45mm-wide gravel tyres, full mudguard mounts (including a removable rear bridge) and two-position bottle mounts on the down tube demonstrate the bike’s versatility.

The frame is made of a blend of unidirectional, Toray T700, T800 and T1000 carbon fibre.

Vitus hints that using so many types of carbon helped it give the frame the properties it needs to be versatile.

Depending on the spec you opt for, it could be a full-blown gravel bike, lightweight endurance road bike (the frame has a claimed weight of 778 to 856g, depending on size), or a laden audax crusher. Even light bikepacking is within its remit.

The bike runs on a BB386 EVO bottom bracket.

Vitus Venon EVO-GR Rival AXS 1X geometry

The Venon’s geometry is classic endurance bike stuff, if a little on the racy side. However, it's also very much applicable to a fast gravel riding experience.

The 72.5-degree head angle is steep enough for the handling to be quick, but not so steep as to make it feel nervous or twitchy.

When it's combined with the 50mm-offset fork and 40mm tyres, the trail pushes out to 60mm. This is very much what I’d expect of a fast gravel bike.

For instance, the Orbea Terra has a 61mm trail in the same size. The flip-chip equipped Cervélo Aspero has 59mm with the fork in its ‘forward’ position, and 64mm in its rearward position.

The ride position is low for a gravel setup, with a 606.7mm stack on this XL test bike. It also has a long 403.3mm reach.

Vitus Venon EVO-GR Rival AXS 1X build

This Venon EVO-GR sits between the Rival 1 build (£2,999.99) and the range-topping gravel model with Force AXS XPLR (£4,299.99).

For £3,499.99, it's a great package and one that undercuts plenty of rivals when you consider the specification.

For instance, a Specialized Crux Expert with Rival AXS and Roval carbon wheels will set you back £6,300. A Cervelo Aspero Rival AXS with Reserve carbon wheels comes in at £5,500.

The Rival AXS group here comes with a 40-tooth chainring and a 10-44t cassette, a good combination with plenty of top-end speed potential and a 40/44t lightest gear to bring tricky steep off-road climbs within reach.

Up-front, a Prime Orra Aero gravel bar combines an aero-wing topped bar with a subtle 4-degree back sweep and an 18-degree flare.

It's very comfortable and the bobbled-textured top surface means you don’t need to tape the aero flat sections for grip (although you might still want to for added cushioning).

This is mated to an FSA SMR alloy stem, featuring the brand’s ACR routing design. They combine to route the brake hoses fully internally.

Prime also provides 44mm-deep Primavera carbon wheels (we’ve tested the shallower 32mm variants).

The blunted aero rim is tubeless-ready and comes with a gravel-friendly 23mm internal width that shapes the excellent Michelin Power Gravel tyres true to their 40mm nominal width.

The Primavera wheels weigh in at 1,530g a pair (claimed), which contributes to the Venon EVO-GR’s respectably light 8.62kg all-in weight.

Prime also provides the all-carbon seatpost, which is topped by a Vitus titanium-railed road saddle.

Vitus Venon EVO-GR Rival AXS 1X ride impressions

The Venon EVO greatly impressed in road-going trim, and this GR variant provides a similarly high watermark.

The sharpness of the frame and fork hasn’t been diluted by running fat tyres and the EVO still responds with immediacy that never fails to impress.

On the tarmac, on the way to one of my favourite local gravel loops, the speed was ample, although the studded tread of the Michelin tyres robbed me of quite a lot of efficiency and added a bit of vagueness in the corners.

It's worth it when you hit the dirt, though.

The stiffness, so welcome when you want to get the power down, doesn’t translate into a harsh ride. In fact, the compliance in the frame, combined with the high-volume tyres, makes it beautifully balanced.

Because it's a bike derived from the road, the EVO-GR is at its best on wide-open ungraded dirt roads, rather than rutted farm land doubletrack or choppy, twisty singletrack.

It feels competitive against the latest wave of race-optimised gravel bikes (such as the BMC Kaius, Factor Ostro Gravel, Scott Addict Gravel and Specialized Crux).

However, the handling is stable and easy to control, and the vibration damping at the front end impressed me too.

The Michelin Power Gravel tyres offer plenty of cornering bite in the dry, but the close-set knobs become something of a mud trap when the conditions underfoot get sticky.

A tyre swap once conditions turn would be a wise added investment, which wouldn't increase the bike’s competitive price significantly.

Vitus Venon EVO-GR Rival AXS 1X bottom line

As a frame package, the new Venon EVO is versatile without feeling compromised. If I only had the space for one bike in my life to cover off-road and gravel riding, I’d find it very hard to turn away from the Venon EVO.

The Venon EVO-GR Rival AXS 1X build is value-packed, while the drivetrain is as fundamentally slick as the higher-level SRAM XPLR groupsets (Force and Red). When you factor in great contact points and good-quality wheels, I’m not sure I’d need to spend any more.

The versatility is such that I’d love to see Vitus offer 2x SRAM AXS Wide or Shimano GRX Di2 builds with two sets of wheels and tyres for distinct gravel and road use (complete with two cassettes).

This way, I’d have maximum choice over which style of riding to do each day, which is the Venon’s core trump card.