Pirelli developing gravity MTB tires with Fabien Barel

Pirelli and Fabien Barel
(Image credit: Pirelli)

The Italian tire manufacturer Pirelli has been busy developing a new range of tires for gravity riding and racing. No official model details are available yet, but the brand has announced that they've been tapping the expertise of downhill racing legend Fabien Barel. 

Barel is a three-time downhill World Champion and a seven-time French downhill National Champion, among other racing achievements. Now, he races e-MTB enduro races and consults on projects like this one with Pirelli. 

Pirelli says that Barel has been testing prototypes of the mysterious new tires. In addition, the tires will be race-tested by Enduro World Series and downhill World Cup athletes. 

"There's already a solid line of Pirelli MTB tires on the market, my job is to help complete it with models dedicated to racing, which will hopefully lead to the successes that the company has already achieved in many other sports," Barel said in a press release. "Take Formula 1, motocross or Superbike, for example. The clear objective of these new tires is to reach the top of the podiums.”

The brand has released photos of a prototype tire, so we can see at least a little bit of what they have been testing. The sidewall has a label that says "Prototype #0," and the tire is also marked with Pirelli's logo. In one photo of the prototype, we can see the tire features staggered side knobs, as well as a center tread that alternates between two-knob and three-knob horizontal blocks.

Pirelli currently offers a range of three different enduro tires. The Scorpion Enduro M is an all-around enduro tire, the Enduro R is a fast-rolling rear tire, and the Enduro S is a more aggressive tire meant for the loosest conditions.

The Scorpion Enduro range features a 60 tpi casing, Pirelli's SmartGRIP compound, and the sidewalls are reinforced with the brand's HardWALL technology. Maybe this new gravity tire will take design cues from the Scorpion Enduro range, but it's impossible to tell at this point.

No release date is known yet, but it will be interesting to see if any other prototypes are spotted in the wild this season.

Ryan Simonovich

Ryan Simonovich has been riding and racing for nearly a decade. He got his start as a cross-country mountain bike racer in California, where he cultivated his love for riding all types of bikes. Ryan eventually gravitated toward enduro and downhill racing but has also been found in the occasional road and cyclo-cross events. Today, he regularly rides the trails of Durango, Colorado, and is aiming to make a career out of chronicling the sport of cycling. 

Rides: Santa Cruz Hightower, Specialized Tarmac SL4

Read more
The best MTB grips are the ODI Reflex seen here fitted to a mountain bike handlebar
Best MTB grips 2025 – our testers' picks of the models that will improve your mountain bike's comfort and handling
100% Celium – one of the best MTB gloves
Best mountain bike gloves – top-rated full-finger gloves for every trail and situation
A rider wearing the best mountain bike goggles
Best mountain bike goggles 2025 – top-rated models that provide clarity and protection on the trails
Latest in
A mountain biker riding a cross-country mountain bike
Content funding on BikePerfect
Calibre Bossnut 2025 seen side on
Don't buy a budget hardtail! The full-sus Calibre Bossnut is the best-value MTB right now with a massive £500 price cut in this Black Friday MTB deal
Continental Race King XC tire side view
Continental’s Olympic and World Championship XC winning Race King Protection is the fastest rolling MTB tire I’ve ever ridden, but it’s not for the nervous
Schwalbe Rocket Ron
Schwalbe Rocket Ron XC tire review – our favorite all-condition race tire
Pinarello Dogma XC bike
Golden beginnings – How Pinarello’s Dogma XC HT rose to the top of cross-country mountain biking
GT Sensor ST Carbon Pro
Is GT's Sensor ST Carbon Pro full-suspension MTB cheap at half the price?
Latest in Latest news
Calibre Bossnut 2025 seen side on
Don't buy a budget hardtail! The full-sus Calibre Bossnut is the best-value MTB right now with a massive £500 price cut in this Black Friday MTB deal
Ritchie Rude riding Fox Live Valve Neo listing
Fox launches Live Valve Neo, a wireless electronic suspension system that can be fitted to any full-suspension bike
e*thirteen's new Sidekick hub being ridden on a trail
e*thirteen launches Sidekick hub which eliminates pedal kickback using a new pawl system
Specialized Stumpjumper 15 Alloy
Specialized grants rider's wishes with the release of an alloy Stumpjumper 15 featuring its Genie shock tech and good old mechanical shifter routing
Steve Peat riding the Santa Cruz Hightower 4
Santa Cruz pitches its new Hightower 4 as the mythical MTB that can truly ride everything
Canyon Spectral:ONfly in a forest
The new Spectral:ONfly is Canyon's lightest e-MTB ever