{"id":1956478,"date":"2026-05-26T08:00:54","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T05:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1956478"},"modified":"2026-05-26T08:00:54","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T05:00:54","slug":"defending-champion-will-race-a-32-inch-gravel-bike-at-the-2026-unbound-200","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1956478","title":{"rendered":"Defending Champion Will Race a 32-Inch Gravel Bike at the 2026 Unbound 200"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/velo-cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Scott-32-inch-Cover-Photo.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<div class=\"content-wrap fp-contentTarget\">\n<div class=\"article-body\">\n<div class=\"mb-base-loose flex flex-wrap gap-(--spacing-base)\">\n<div class=\"fp-remove flex items-center justify-start gap-(--spacing-base-tight)\"><span class=\"font-utility-2 font-bold text-primary\">Logan Jones-Wilkins<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pub-date font-utility-2 text-secondary\">Updated May 26, 2026 10:33AM<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Scott has announced that two of its athletes will be riding prototype 32-inch gravel bikes at the 2026 Unbound Gravel. Cam Jones, who won the 2025 Unbound 200, and Robin Gemperle, who won the 2025 Tour Divide, will ride the unreleased bike at the 2026 Unbound Gravel 200 and Unbound XL, respectively.<\/p>\n<p>The bike is still a prototype, but unlike many of the frames and bikes shown at Sea Otter in April, Scott\u2019s 32-inch gravel bike appears to be a much more modern, production-level product. It is a full-carbon frame, without any lugs or adjustable tubes, and features slight aero shaping throughout the design.<\/p>\n<p>The two bikes even have bespoke paint jobs that look like they could be launched as production colorways, with Gemperle riding a silver and green frame, and Jones on a silver and pink. While 32-inch mountain bikes have been raced and won, at high-profile races like Cape Epic, having last year\u2019s Unbound 200 winner on a 32-inch gravel bike is a significant step forward for the technology.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_986915\" class=\"pom-image-wrap photo-alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Scott 32-inch Body 2\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2400\" height=\"1600\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-986915\" src=\"https:\/\/velo-cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Scott-32-inch-Body-2.jpg?width=3840&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=75&amp;fit=cover\"><figcaption class=\"pom-caption\">(Photo: SCOTT Sports \/ Lukas Schumacher, Rachael Galipo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThis bike makes you feel like you\u2019re levitating over the surface,\u201d Cam Jones said in the press release. \u201cI\u2019ll be experiencing a road race while everybody else is racing on gravel. The driving traction and cornering grip are revolutionary. I\u2019m genuinely scared how fast I\u2019ll be able to corner once on a course with proper descents.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad-placeholder-wrapper relative w-full border-t border-b border-border-light col-span-full my-3 md:col-span-10 md:col-start-2\">\n<div class=\"mb-[30px] min-h-[30px] text-center\"><span class=\"font-utility-4 font-medium tracking-[1px] text-neutral-500 uppercase\">ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Unbeknownst to the public, Jones and Gemperle have been riding 32-inch prototypes since last year. Cam Jones, for example, headed to Emporia for Unbond recons after Mid South Gravel this March, where he could put the 32-inch bike through its paces before confirming the bike would be used in his title defense.<\/p>\n<p>Both riders have seen the concept grow from an unfinished product to the race-capable prototypes that will be on the start line this Friday and Saturday in Emporia.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_986918\" class=\"pom-image-wrap photo-alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Scott 32-inch Body\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2400\" height=\"1600\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-986918\" src=\"https:\/\/velo-cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Scott-32-inch-Body.jpg?width=3840&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=75&amp;fit=cover\"><figcaption class=\"pom-caption\">(Photo: SCOTT Sports \/ Lukas Schumacher, Rachael Galipo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cWe started by riding an unfinished bike, with crucial parts still developing,\u201d Robin Gemperle said, \u201cBut ever since, I\u2018ve known that even if there wouldn\u2019t be a single additional test ride, I\u2019d immediately take it to racing once granted permission.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere were plenty of additional rides, and the project found its final shape, which cemented the feeling that this big boy is the actual size gravel racing, and especially Unbound Gravel, was waiting for.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad-placeholder-wrapper relative w-full border-t border-b border-border-light col-span-full my-3 md:col-span-10 md:col-start-2\">\n<div class=\"mb-[30px] min-h-[30px] text-center\"><span class=\"font-utility-4 font-medium tracking-[1px] text-neutral-500 uppercase\">ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>For Scott, this is the final step of its R&amp;D process on bringing a 32-inch gravel bike to its lineup. Racing the bike at Unbound, with all of its unpredictability, roughness, and speed, is a true stress test of the bike that should inform both Scott and the interested public what the viability of 32-inch gravel bikes as racing machines truly is.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\">\n<div class=\"mb-base-loose flex flex-wrap gap-(--spacing-base)\">\n<div class=\"fp-remove flex items-center justify-start gap-(--spacing-base-tight)\"><span class=\"font-utility-2 font-bold text-primary\">Logan Jones-Wilkins<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pub-date font-utility-2 text-secondary\">Updated May 26, 2026 10:33AM<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/gravel\/gravel-gear\/cam-jones-will-race-scott-32-inch-gravel-bike-at-2026-unbound-200\/&#8221;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/velo-cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Scott-32-inch-Cover-Photo.jpg&#8221;] Logan Jones-Wilkins Updated May 26, 2026 10:33AM Scott has announced that two of its athletes will be riding prototype 32-inch gravel bikes at the 2026 Unbound Gravel. Cam Jones, who won the 2025 Unbound 200, and Robin Gemperle, who won the 2025 Tour Divide, will ride the unreleased bike at the 2026 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,71],"class_list":["post-1956478","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-velo-outsideonline-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1956478","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1956478"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1956478\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1956478"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1956478"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1956478"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}