SRAM has launched legal proceedings against the UCI over the governing body’s proposed gear restriction regulations, which the component manufacturer says will unfairly impact and penalise the brand’s riders and teams, without increasing safety during races.

The complaint, targeting the maximum gearing rule set to be trialled at next month’s Tour of Guangxi, was filed with the Belgian Competition Authority (BCA), on the grounds that the protocol was adopted by the UCI without consultation, transparency, or any safety justification, will disadvantages SRAM-equipped riders in races, and distorts the drivetrain market, violating EU competition law.

After reviewing SRAM’s complaint, the BCA initiated formal anti-trust proceedings under EU and Belgian competition laws earlier this week.

The Prosecutor General of the BCA will now conduct an investigation and present their findings to the BCA’s impartial decision-making body for an ultimate ruling, which may have serious implications for the relationship between cycling’s governing body and the bike industry.

What’s SRAM’s case all about?

SRAM’s decision to take the UCI to court escalates a row that has been bubbling for months, ever since the governing body announced in June that it was planning to introduce a raft of equipment changes, including a maximum gearing rule, ostensibly to deal with the “safety implications” of the increasing speed of professional races.

The new rules – most of which are set to come into effect from next January – will see time trial helmets banned in road races, a maximum rim height set, a new fork width limit introduced, and, most controversially, the implementation of a new minimum handlebar width of 400mm.

The governing body also announced in June that it will trial a new maximum gearing rule at the Tour of Guangxi in China in October, in another attempt to limit top speeds in the peloton.

> UCI to trial maximum gearing rule — but will it really make racing safer?

This new rule, a variation on the old junior gears system, marks the first technical gear limitation in modern professional cycling and will cap the distance covered per pedal revolution to 10.46 meters – effectively limiting riders to a maximum gear ratio of 54×11 on 700c wheels.

Though we’ve seen many riders mix and match larger chainrings from other brands on their bikes in recent years, Shimano, Campagnolo, and FSA now all have maximum gear ratios of 54×11, meaning they will be largely unaffected by the rule.

2024 midrange bike vs superbike sram red axs crankset
2024 midrange bike vs superbike sram red axs crankset (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

However, the trial system will significantly impact SRAM-sponsored teams, whose riders use a 10-tooth smallest cog on the rear cassette. Under the new 10.46 metre cap, any combination exceeding 54×11 is now prohibited.

This means SRAM riders using a 10-tooth cog will be limited to a maximum 49-tooth chainring, ruling out the 50T and 54T setups that are common in the pro peloton, and the 54×10 configuration favoured by many of SRAM’s professional teams.

While the gearing trial at the Tour of Guangxi, which the UCI says will involve commissaires inspecting chainrings and verifying cassette sizes before the start of stages, comes after calls for restricted junior-style gearing by the likes of Wout van Aert, the news has been widely criticised by riders and coaches.

Last month, Tom Pidcock claimed that limiting gears would only make the sport more dangerous by crowding the road on descents, while Dan Bigham claimed at the Tour de France that “restricting gear ratios simply distracts from making meaningful changes to rider safety”.

“From my analysis, for reducing ratios to have an impact, we need to presume professionals would adhere to unrealistic cadence limits that aren’t supported by the literature,” the British aerodynamics expert, who now works for SRAM-equipped Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, said in July.

“It’ll impact on as little as 0.01 per cent of a race and will arguably reduce speeds by no more than 0.5kph. All of this to change entire groupset design? It really doesn’t seem effective to me.”

Tom Pidcock descending during stage 13, 2025 Giro d’Italia
Tom Pidcock descending during stage 13, 2025 Giro d’Italia (Image Credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com)

And now, as it launches its legal action, SRAM is calling for the immediate suspension of the UCI’s gearing restrictions, preventing it from being trialled in China or any other future races, claiming the rules “hinder innovation, limit rider choice, and unfairly disadvantage SRAM riders and SRAM”.

According to the components brand, the maximum gearing protocol was also “adopted without consultation or transparency and lacks supporting empirical evidence, and any safety justification”.

And along with disadvantaging SRAM-using riders, the company says the rule “distorts competition in the road drivetrain market by limiting choice for professional teams and ultimately consumers, as SRAM relies on top-level teams to use and market its products”.

A spokesperson for SRAM has said today that the brand “made multiple attempts” to engage the UCI and raises it concerns about the trial in good faith, claiming the governing body’s leadership “declined to engage in meaningful dialogue regarding the rule’s validity or its basis”.

“While SRAM continues to participate in technical discussions to help teams comply with the restrictions at the announced gearing-restricted race, the lack of transparency and collaboration left legal action as the only remaining path forward,” the spokesperson said.

“This protocol penalises and discourages innovation and puts our riders and teams at a competitive disadvantage,” SRAM CEO Ken Lousberg said in a statement.

“We could not have imagined the drivetrains of today when SRAM was founded nearly 40 years ago, and we know the drivetrains of the next decade will continue to evolve. We rely on the sport’s governing body to foster an environment that encourages innovation for the benefit of riders and racers today, and riders in the future.

“We also rely on the governing body to make science-based, impactful changes for rider safety. We are the harshest critics of our own equipment that is raced and ridden around the world; safety is paramount to us.”

Reputational damage and no safety improvements?

While the Tour of Guangxi trial remains, in the UCI’s words, a “test”, SRAM claims its introduction has already caused “tangible harm”, with the brand’s gearing being publicly labelled as non-compliant, “creating reputational damage, market confusion, team and athlete anxiety, and potential legal exposure”.

The brand added that the public furore surrounding the rules may have already led potential customers to view SRAM’s gearing as “illegal”, exposing the company to “reputational harm and potential liability”, while if the trial is made permanent, retailers and bike manufacturers may abandon SRAM products, harming their position in the industry.

Dauphiné 2025 Edward Theuns Lidl-Trek Madone SRAM Red 1x.JPG
Dauphiné 2025 Edward Theuns Lidl-Trek Madone SRAM Red 1x (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

SRAM also claimed that if the gearing restriction is not lifted, racers using unmodified SRAM drivetrains risk disqualification and financial penalties, impacting race results and potential sponsorship opportunities for teams.

The company noted that its teams have not been able to adequately test limiting gearing, putting them in unnecessary risk.

Meanwhile, the brand says the UCI’s indication that additional trials may follow after the Tour of Guangxi has led to a “state of uncertainty” for its teams.

“Calling it a test doesn’t make it any less of a race,” Lousberg continued. “All riders on the start line should be able to compete on equal footing.

“Right now, SRAM-equipped teams will have to race at a disadvantage on compromised equipment with a reduced number of gearing options compared to their competitors. It’s also not clear what is being tested.”

> “Cycling is close to its Ayrton Senna moment”: Dan Bigham says “we will have blood on our hands if Pogačar or Van der Poel have a life-changing injury”, branding UCI gear restriction trial a distraction

SRAM and Lousberg have also criticised the UCI’s framing of the gear restrictions as a safety initiative, despite, they say, no evidence being presented to back up such claims.

“SRAM’s analysis of crash data from the 2025 Tour de France, using telemetry and footage, found no correlation between higher rollout configurations and crash risk,” the company said. “Crashes on descents were rare and occurred at speeds achievable on gearing configurations from all suppliers for WorldTour teams.”

Lousberg added: “If you talk to riders across the sport, they are asking for safer races, for better course designs.

“There are things we as a collective can do to help make races safer, but arbitrarily restricting a gearing choice – a gearing choice that only we provide to our teams – is fundamentally unfair to teams, riders, and SRAM.”

As part of its complaint, SRAM has also called for representation for bike and equipment manufacturers on the board responsible for equipment rulings and changes at the UCI, and the establishment of internal procedures that will ensure future UCI regulatory efforts comply with EU competition law.

> “We’re cyclists. People should focus on other things”: Tom Pidcock argues restricting gears will make cycling more dangerous and brands UCI safety changes a “smokescreen”

“We’re proud of the position we’ve earned in the market over nearly four decades,” Lousberg said. “It’s not something we’re willing to relinquish because of arbitrary drivetrain restrictions imposed by a governing body – and we won’t back down without making our case.

“Today, the UCI’s actions unjustly penalise SRAM riders and SRAM. But given the way the governing body makes its decisions – decisions such as handlebar width, rim depth, the recent transponder implementation, and penalisation of teams in Romandie… even sock height – it’s impossible to know who may be impacted in the future.

“Through this process we hope to create a more transparent and collaborative climate for teams and component suppliers that ultimately leads to a better and safer sport for all.”

Dauphiné 2025 Edward Theuns Lidl-Trek Madone SRAM Red 1x 54t.JPG
Dauphiné 2025 Edward Theuns Lidl-Trek Madone SRAM Red 1x 54t (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

In a letter to SRAM riders, teams, and industry partners, Lousberg added that the legal action aims to “protect the right to compete on equal footing” and to ensure that the cycling industry is viewed as a core stakeholder by the UCI, with an equal voice when it comes to big decisions.

“We know this rule has already caused confusion, anxiety, and disruption. We’re working hard to resolve it quickly and transparently,” the CEO concluded.

“Our commitment to rider safety, performance, and innovation remains unchanged. We believe the future of cycling should be shaped by collaboration and partnership, not exclusion and intimidation.”