NEW 2026 Campagnolo PISTA WHEELS: All the info you need to know
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- Written by: Luca
- Parent Category: Bicycles news review test
- Category: Bicycles news
NEW 2026 Campagnolo PISTA WHEELS: All the info you need to know
Campagnolo presents "Pista," a new version of its indoor wheel, a racing evolution of a previous training model, offering a racing experience to an even wider audience on velodromes.
Once upon a time—in the early years of the new millennium—the Campagnolo "Pista" wheel was a success as a training wheel or introduction to speed on velodromes. Starting July 25, the Pista returns to the track, but with a completely revamped concept:
No longer just a training option, but a high-performance option, ideal for both youth and professional-level competitions. It can be used as a pair or in a mixed configuration with our Ghibli.
Compared to the latter, the Pista stands out for its excellent handling, brilliant performance in more tactical disciplines—such as keirin—and greater practicality in terms of transport and maintenance. The Ghibli, however, remains the choice of choice for time trials and pursuits, where aerodynamics are a primary requirement.
The track is a sector that Campagnolo has always aimed to dominate with products aimed at the highest level of performance, winning Olympic races and setting world records. The new Pista wheel has been (re)born based on the feedback the R&D department has received from the Federations and the many athletes who push our products to the limit on oval courses around the world.
Strength in numbers
The key feature of the new Pista wheel is that the hub, spokes, and rim have been designed to work in synergy, as if they were a single component once launched. This engineering decision was made to achieve the greatest possible rigidity, since on the track, power transmission, responsiveness, and riding feel are crucial.
Aerodynamics, essential due to the extremely high speeds, have been carefully considered even in the most hidden details: the hubs have been designed to have a reduced frontal surface area, and the flanges are grooved with a spoke exit guide, so that both the head (J-bend) and the body of the spoke remain completely coplanar with the flange face, without any exposure.
The front wheel features twenty 2 mm bladed spokes, and the rear features twenty-four (also 2 mm), all with retention nipples housed inside the rim, allowing for the most linear design possible and limiting turbulence from a rotating component.
The rim has a profile height of 65 mm and is made of unidirectional carbon fiber, meaning the composite weave is arranged according to the workload.
At the heart of the Track
The “Track” project inherits the technologies that have allowed us to establish ourselves in top-level racing from Campagnolo's expertise.
Among these are Cult (Ceramic Ultimate Level Technology) ceramic bearings, native to Vicenza, which offer the highest level of smoothness on the market. A polymer cage houses thirteen silicon nitride balls, a material whose hardness ensures an extremely low friction coefficient for smoothness on steel tracks. Laboratory tests have shown that CULT bearings have a 40% lower friction coefficient than standard sealed bearings, so much so that they can rotate five and a half times longer. The cup and cone system allows the bearings to work in alignment with the forces at play.
One wheel, a thousand possibilities
Although a track wheel designed solely for speed, the new Pista has been designed in four models to be versatile and adaptable to individual indoor specialties.
First and foremost, it is available in two options: Tubular or 2-Way Fit. The first solution features a 27.4 mm rim channel width for traditional tubular bonding, but tubeless adoption is also becoming widespread in velodromes, and we're responding to this new standard with a hooked model with a 21 mm internal channel.
Both options adopt two different hub configurations: the first set features a 100 mm wide front hub (which can be assembled with either a thru-axle or retaining nuts) and a 120 mm rear hub with double threading to allow, via a flip-flop rotation system, two different gear ratios on the same wheel; the second set features a new, more modern standard that features a 65 mm wide front hub and a 100 mm wide rear hub; in this case, the flip-flop option is not available.
On the scale, the tubular version weighs 1,672 g (per pair) and is priced at €2,510.00, while the 2-Way Fit version weighs 1,730 g (per pair) and is priced at €2,710.00.
With these measurements, designed for the wider wheelbase of current fork geometries, the new Pista wheel is available Available, at the same cost, with narrower hubs (65 mm front and 100 mm rear) to remain compatible with traditional track frames.
The tubular version weighs 1,692 g (per pair) and the 2-Way Fit version weighs 1,763 g (per pair).
Finally, the recommended retail price starts at €1,230.00, the same price as a wheelset with "traditional" hubs.
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