"These gains are enormous" - New research shows how riders can gain huge advantage by team car choice in time trials
CyclingTuesday, 14 July 2026 at 09:25
As riders approach a crucial time trial in the 2026 Tour de France, new research has shown that riders can gain huge amounts in aerodynamics solely based on the team car behind them in the race against the clock.
In 2023, the UCI, cycling's world governing body, extended the minimum distance between rider and following car in individual time trials from 10 to 25 metres, with some fans wondering what exactly is the reason for such a move.
As it turns out, riders stand to gain measurably by having their team car closer to them during the time trial, while factors such as the shape and size of the car and bikes on the roof also have unexpected aerodynamic gains.
Led by Heriot-Watt University in Scotland, in partnership with Ansys, part of Synopsys, the study confirms the importance of team car selection for the time trial.
"When a cyclist rides, they create an area of overpressure in front of them that holds them back, and an area of suction behind them that pulls them back, causing resistance," Professor Bert Blocken, Head of the Aerospace Engineering Cluster in the School of Engineering and Physical Sciences at Heriot-Watt University, said:
"But a car creates the same effect on a much larger scale. It pushes a big bubble of overpressure ahead of it, and when the car drives close behind a cyclist, that bubble partly cancels out the suction behind the rider, providing the cyclist with a meaningful boost."
Team car can boost riders during time trial
"At a distance of just one metre, a rider's aerodynamic resistance drops by almost 14 per cent, which is massive."
In essence, a car behind the rider during the time trial gives them a small but measurable push. Although marginal, the exact benefits can be measured in seconds during a time trial, and at the highest level, can be the difference between winning and losing.
Prof. Blocken added: “The benefit falls away quickly as the distance grows, but it never reaches zero, not at 10 metres, not even at 30.
"You might say these are small numbers, but elite time trials are sometimes decided by a tenth of a second, or even a hundredth. In that context, these gains are enormous. They could determine who wins the Tour de France time trial."
A second study by the team, in 2024, showed that stacking multiple bicycles on a team car's roof increases the push effect further, prompting the UCI to limit teams from exaggerating the amount of spare bikes they carry.
The researchers found the benefit a rider receives depends on only two factors, the distance between the rider and the car, and a single number describing the car's aerodynamics, its drag area, known as CdA.
The bigger and more blunt the car - the larger gains for the rider
The CdA is a measure of the size and streamlining of the car: the bigger and more blunt the vehicle, the higher its CdA, and the bigger the push it gives the rider ahead.
Professor Blocken added: "There is a very simple way for the UCI to avoid too large unwanted benefits. First, impose a maximum CdA value for team cars, so no team can gain an excessive advantage simply by choosing a bulkier, less aerodynamic vehicle.
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“And second, enforce the following distance, ideally the cars would be 40 or 50 metres back, but at the very least the existing 25-metre rule should be enforced by visual inspection until measurement technology is in place. The rules should simply be changed, and then we are done with it."
Dr Frédéric Grappe, Head of Performance of the French cycling team Groupama-FDJ United, offered a team's perspective on the research: “A car indeed has the capacity to push a certain volume of air forwards in the direction of the cyclist during the time trial, so it gives him an aero advantage.
"As Prof. Bert Blocken’s new study shows, taking the shape of the car into account is of paramount importance to provide unfair aerodynamic benefits.”
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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- Thanks for writing this. I've been saying this nonstop. The Westerners are full of themselves. They think that the only good cyclists come from France, Italy, Spain, Belgian, Denmark, Holland and Norway. They still think Eastern and South-Eastern European contries are less worthy.mus-musculuspeedypogigonzales14-07-2026
- So @mij, you're proud of your orange orangutan president, who's killing school girls in Iran (more than 150 died), his gestapo Ice agents are deporting many innocent people and breaking up families, his gestapo Ice agents, dressed up as terrorists are killing american citizens. Your president, that you're so proud of, is threatening Greenland again, He wants Canada to become america's 51 state. Your president is covering up his pedophile friends... why? Because he's a pedophile himself. THE WHOLE WORLD HATES TRUMP, but that's not enough for you, is it? You're still proud of your president? Shame on you!!! PS:As for Europe... every European country today, has more democracy then the USA. Since your orange orangutan president, democracy in america is DEAD!!!mus-musculuspeedypogigonzales14-07-2026
- You Westerners are doing everything possible to stop Pogi-Baby Hulk from Slovenia (some southern parts of Slovenia are considered the Balkans) from winning the 5th Tour. The western media is talking about Pogi being doped to the gills, putting UAE in the shittiest hotels without AC etc. What will be next... paying people good money, on side of the road, to throw Pogi off his bike? Just asking, maybe someone already knows.mus-musculuspeedypogigonzales14-07-2026
- Dear UAE Please stop being better than everyone else....... doubt this would be an issue if it were a Dutch, Belgian, French or Italian team.. old cycling just can't stand the newslappers6614-07-2026
- Yeah, but I've heard cycling fans say, if Pogi was in team Visma, he would already be a 6X Tour winner, this year he would be "fighting" for his 7th Tour. What do you think about that?mus-musculuspeedypogigonzales14-07-2026
- The 'problem' (for lack of a better word) is the grand tours are all in Europe, so if you shift the TDF, then the Giro or Vuelta (depending on which way they shift the calendar) will then have to be held in the heat. There are also many other races, so the calendar is quite packed and there's not much room to shift. I think it's just something they have to put up with unfortunately. Us cyclists are tough and ride in most weather conditions and the pros are even tougher, so I think this is just more of a "discussion point of the day" and we'll all move on tomorrow to discuss something else haha (24hr news cycle etc).Pogboom14-07-2026
- and of course, when Europe need a bailout, the USD going into the IMF are not nearly as loathed as you make them out to be in your comments. the economic gap between the US and Europe has expanded dramatically. while again you might loathe money, you need our dollars.mij14-07-2026
- wait, you say you have never lived in the west, but were born in Cleveland? been there for 26 years now? it is interesting, all of the europeans that have come to the west during the World Cup. they love it. they say it is nothing like they could have imagined it to be. far better than they expected, and frankly far better than their European homes of small houses, no local amenities, and cramped cities. I am from the USA and proud of it. I am proud of my president as he is the leader of my country, even though I don't always agree with him. I don't bash your little Croatia with a per capita GDP of $24k USD per year. Homes less than half the size of the average US home. don't bash my country if you haven't been here in 26 years. as many people just learned when visiting America, the USA is far better than anyone expected, the people are friendlier, and it is a great place to live. the best IMO. and I have been to 38 countries around the world, for months on end some trips. I am not xenophobic, but I also don't bash someone else's homeland, someone else's leader. and the devices responsible for sending you this content, staying in touch with people, the vehicles used to move you around, advances in medicine and more - all from the USA. trying to figure out what Croatia adds. If it is only a beautiful coastline, drive the PCH from LA to San Francisco. we have natural beauty in spades in the USAmij14-07-2026
- Can i get an amen up here. We certainly do have a Pogi 1.0 and a Pogi 2.0.
Andrew14-07-2026 - You watch too many moviesAndrew14-07-2026
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