3 Major Awards for BCF: Ridley Named Best Gravel Bike and Best Bike Overall, Eddy Merckx Bikes Wins Best Road Race Bike

Belgian Cycling Factory (BCF) has landed three of the most coveted honours in the cycling industry, picking up a trio of BikeRadar Awards across two of its brands. Ridley and Eddy Merckx Bikes, both part of the BCF family, were recognised by the British cycling media outlet in three separate categories. Ridley's new Kanzo Fast 2.0 walked away with both "Best Gravel Bike" and the show-stopping "Best Bike Overall" title, while the Eddy Merckx 525R was named "Best Road Race Bike."

The annual BikeRadar Awards rank among the most prestigious accolades in the international cycling industry. To determine its winners, BikeRadar puts a large number of bikes from various categories through extensive real-world testing. The strongest contenders from that process are then brought together for a final round, from which a single winner is chosen per category. For Belgian Cycling Factory, this triple win is a special piece of recognition, arriving on the heels of a summer that was already a sporting success in its own right.

Kanzo Fast 2.0 Takes Top Honours

The Ridley Kanzo Fast 2.0 was named Best Gravel Bike and, on top of that, secured the most significant recognition of the entire awards programme: Best Bike Overall. The new gravel race bike pairs advanced aerodynamics with clearance for tyres up to 58 millimetres and an innovative race geometry. With the Kanzo Fast 2.0, Ridley set out to answer the evolution of gravel racing, a discipline in which speeds keep climbing and courses keep getting more technical. Among other things, the bike brings the latest generation of aerodynamic technology from the Noah Fast over into the gravel segment, a development philosophy that clearly resonated with BikeRadar's judges. As the panel put it in its verdict, the Kanzo Fast 2.0 defines everything a modern gravel racer should be.

The second honour for BCF went to the Eddy Merckx 525R, crowned Best Road Bike. The bike was developed as a modern performance road machine with a clear thread back to Eddy Merckx's own legacy. It, too, is built around an innovative geometry that lets the rider sit in a highly aerodynamic position without sacrificing comfort. BikeRadar's judges described the 525R as stiff, responsive, quick and efficient to react, and above all, great fun to ride.

Crowning a Memorable Summer of Racing

The three BikeRadar Awards arrive at a moment when BCF is already enjoying a remarkable summer on the road and in the gravel. Ridley-equipped riders picked up multiple stage wins at both the Tour de France and the Tour de France Femmes. On top of that, Torstein Træen and Sigrid Haugset each wore the yellow leader's jersey aboard a Ridley during the Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes respectively. In gravel racing, Daan Soete claimed the Belgian national title in his home town of Grobbendonk, edging out close friend Wout van Aert in a thrilling head-to-head.

CEO and founder Jochim Aerts sees the awards as a fitting crown on the work being done throughout the company. "This is a particularly meaningful recognition for the whole team," he says. "We're a relatively compact team that competes every single day with the biggest players in the bike industry. Having two bikes from our brands recognised by a respected international outlet like BikeRadar makes us incredibly proud, especially after a summer in which we also got to celebrate the yellow jersey and multiple stage wins at the Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes with Ridley."

According to Aerts, the awards fit within the broader growth Belgian Cycling Factory has gone through in recent times. The company recently expanded its brand portfolio with the acquisition of mountain bike brand Nukeproof and the launch of new e-bike brand Aeres. "We've made a conscious effort in recent years to invest in our brands, our products and our people. The expansion with Nukeproof and the launch of Aeres are good examples of that. At the same time, we keep pushing hard on innovation within our existing brands. These three awards show that those efforts are being noticed internationally too. It's a wonderful confirmation, but above all, it's motivation to keep building."

Fourteen Honours and Counting Since 2022

These three new BikeRadar Awards bring the number of major international honours Belgian Cycling Factory has collected since the years following the pandemic to fourteen. Both Ridley and Eddy Merckx Bikes have been recognised multiple times for their bikes over recent years. Head of Product Pieter Potters stresses that awards like these mean far more to a bike brand than a nice trophy on a shelf. "An award like this is ultimately the result of a huge amount of work that happens behind the scenes," Potters says. "From our engineers and product developers to the people in our production, marketing and our international dealer network, everyone contributes to the final result. So when an independent party like BikeRadar chooses three of our bikes as the best in their category, that's an enormous confirmation of that shared effort."