Mario Cipollini once famously said that if he hadn’t been a cyclist, he’d have become a porn star. A video for the launch of his brand's new BOND bike for 2013, however, sees him play out another silver screen fantasy, with Super Mario taking on the role of a James Bond-style secret agent.
It’s all here – the iconic location (Monte Carlo), helicopter and motorbike chases, speedboat with bikini-clad beauty, as Mario outdoes the villains to preserve his secrets.
Those secrets, by the way? They’re revealed at the end of the film, and keep watching for a teaser of the “aesthetically sexy” 2013 bikes.
There is also a technical video and two ‘behind the scenes’ ones to go with the finished film – the latter showcasing a fantastic descent by Cipollini from the aptly named Cipollaio near his home town of Lucca – clock the startled cyclist coming the other way just after 5:20 in the first of those.
Cipollini isn’t the first top Italian sprinter to feature in a video inspired by Ian Fleming’s secret agent – last year, James Bond also provided the theme as Pippo Pozzato was filmed on the streets of Milan for Playboy.
Unlike that infamous Sidi Cycling Shoes ad, this time the former national champion and Milan-Sanremo winner kept his clothes on, appearing in a succession of dinner jackets, or lo smoking as the Italians call them.
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Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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