Best Performance Road Tyres: A Data Driven Guide

Best

Performance Road Tyres: A Data Driven Guide

If you've ever googled for "best road cycle tyres" you've probably seen tons of articles claiming which tyres are best. Most sites praise the same tyres but the ‘why’ is rarely explained beyond subjective feelings. A few sites base part of their judgement on independent tests, but then end up hiding the data behind a paywall. The majority are based on the subjective opinion of one person. 

Even Cycling Weekly, in their 2025 best tyres article, recommend 25mm tyres. This is contrary to the current trend in the performance orientated world of pro cycling, where teams moved away from the size years ago. This is a good example of the need for critical thinking and using evidence based resources to guide and inform decisions.

Beyond Subjective Feel 

This guide will use Bicycle Rolling Resistance’s independent data to inform the recommendations on tyres. I’ve been using their data to inform my decisions for years but before this like most people I’d base my decisions on some questionable resources. Word of mouth, the feeling they give on descents, lack of flats, and marketing hype are common reasons for tyre purchases. While it’s important to trust your own subjective intuition, data driven choices should be prioritised. If you are interested in the protocols used, you’ll find everything over on their website. 

Navigating Road Tyre Types

There are three types of tyres; clincher, tubeless and the almost extinct tubular. First, clinchers are the most basic, consisting of a tyre and inner tube. Second, tubeless systems, once known for their setup challenges, have become increasingly user friendly. They eliminate the inner tube, relying on sealant and a tubeless valve. This setup has numerous benefits over clinchers, including self sealing for minor punctures and reduced rolling resistance from the absence of an inner tube. Finally, there are tubular tyres, a cult classic but hard to recommend these days. They include an inner tube sewn into the tyre and, while historically low rolling resistance, have fallen out of favor due to the process of gluing or taping them onto the rim, high cost and limited availability. In addition, if a flat tyre happens, the entire tyre will need to be removed and replaced. This is costly and time consuming. One potential benefit of tubulars is their ability to be ridden flat without detaching from the rim, which may offer some protection to carbon rims.

Optimising Tyre Choice

Selecting the best performing tyres for you comes down to a few key factors:

• Frame clearance: The limiting factor on your maximum tyre width.

• Budget: Higher performing tyres tend to be higher cost tyres.

• Road conditions: Rough roads demand wider, more durable tyres; sacrificing aerodynamics and rolling resistance can be a worthwhile trade off for ride quality and puncture protection.

• Intended use: Racing demands peak performance tyres, while training on rough roads often calls for more durable tyres. Since many cyclists use just one wheelset, and tyre swaps are a hassle, it's often best to choose the highest performing tyre that meets their criteria.

• The rim to tyre aerodynamics: Optimum width compatibility produces a blunted air foil cross section that minimises drag, while wider rims support tyres for stable, aerodynamic form. Aligning the leading edges of the tyre and rim allows air to flow smoothly. Wide modern wheelsets are designed to optimise aerodynamics with wider tyres, creating the blunted air foil profile. Some older and/or narrower wheelsets compromise aerodynamic efficiency. However, it’s probably favourable to take the aerodynamic hit and prioritise wider tyres for their reduced rolling resistance, increased grip, and improved comfort.

  
  

What Performs Best?

Okay so now you know the current landscape for tyres. Let’s discuss what the best options are out there. The word “performance” gets thrown around a lot (especially by me). In terms of tyres, it basically means what will allow you to go the fastest and make it to the finish line. For example, the Vittoria Corsa Pro Speed TLR are the fastest rolling tyres out there but the risk of a puncture is far greater than some of the other options that have more balanced rolling resistance and puncture protection characteristics.

Based on performance assessments by Bicycle Rolling Resistance, the Pirelli P Zero Race TLR RS demonstrates superior overall performance compared to the widely popular Continental GP 5000 S TR and Vittoria Corsa Pro TLR.

Rough Road Ready

Honourable mentions: If you want a tyre with increased puncture protection then the Tufo Comtura 4TR is a strong option as well as the Pirelli Cinturato Velo TLR if you want to have even greater faith in the puncture protection. While these tyres excel for training on rough roads, they are not recommended for racing.

Size Matters

Aside from the specific models, tyre width is very critical. Trends today are in the direction of wider tyres due to their reduced rolling resistance, improved comfort and grip, especially on less than ideal road surfaces. While 25mm had been the standard, wider tyres are more comfortable and tend to be faster due to fewer losses from vibrations. For riding on smooth roads, a 28mm may be perfect, being a great balance between aerodynamics and rolling resistance. For training or riding on rough roads, a 30mm or even larger tyre will provide a real enhancement in comfort and grip. 

However, your limiting factor will always be your frame clearance. It's also worth considering the interaction between your rim width and tyre width for optimal aerodynamics. Even if your frame allows for very wide tyres, pairing them with a narrow rim can create an undesirable 'bulge' shape, negatively impacting airflow.

The Price of Performance

As you’ve probably noticed, all these tyre recommendations have a high price tag. I understand that not suggesting a low budget option can seem out of touch for most people (myself included). However, when the focus is on high performance characteristics, whether that be for racing or training, it's difficult to recommend a compromised option solely for budget's sake. It could be argued that the Pirelli Cinturato Velo TLR is budget friendly if you look at it from a long term durability aspect. 

Instead of a specific clincher tyre, I strongly suggest running tubeless if your wheelset allows it. For those without tubeless wheels, you can still reap excellent performance by using latex inner tubes with the recommended tubeless compatible tyres recommended above. This combination provides a performance very close to tubeless in terms of rolling resistance.

Aerodynamic Tyres

The Aero 111 tyre represents an innovative approach to tyre aerodynamics, featuring tread notches designed to reduce drag. Marketed as a front only tyre, it aims to make the most out of the front tyre leading edge position. The Aero 111 has achieved the highest recorded wet grip score on Bicycle Rolling Resistance.

However, while Continental quotes a potential 18-watt saving at 45 kph and yaw angles of 15-20 degrees, the on-the-road relevance of these figures has been called into question. Research by Brownlee et al. suggests that yaw angles this high are comparatively uncommon in on-the-road cycling conditions.

Furthermore, independent testing by AeroCoach has discovered that the Aero 111's aerodynamic benefits are offset by its increased rolling resistance compared to other tyres on the market. This disparity raises questions about the Aero 111's overall efficiency, and caution must be exercised in considering its trade-offs.

The Aero 111 is a technically interesting tyre, but it appears that the claimed aerodynamic benefits are very specific, and with a drawback of increased rolling resistance over competitors. Therefore, any cyclist considering this tyre should weigh its potential aerodynamic advantages against its rolling resistance and the likely wind speed and direction for their race/event. It's a glimpse into the future of tyre technology. Continental has clearly developed a new tyre compound, achieving their highest grip score to date with this tyre. If the anticipated GP6000 incorporates this new tyre compound, it’s looking like a strong step forward in tyre performance.

The cost of the Aero 111, at $209.99 AUD (February 2025), puts it at the high end of the market. This will have to be balanced against the potential gain in performance and the availability of other high performance tyres on the market. Whether this is a direction for high performance tyre technology to go down in the future only time will tell.

(Continental Aero 111)

References

Bicycle Rolling Resistance | Rolling Resistance Tests. Retrieved February 24, 2025, from https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/

Brownlie, L., Ostafichuk, P., Tews, E., Muller, H., Briggs, E., & Franks, K. (2010). The wind-averaged aerodynamic drag of competitive time trial cycling helmets. Procedia Engineering, 2(2), 2419–2424. 10.1016/j.proeng.2010.04.009

Continental Aero 111 wind tunnel & rolling resistance data. (2024, November 27). AeroCoach. Retrieved February 24, 2025, from https://www.aero-coach.co.uk/continental-aero-111-wind-tunnel-rolling-resistance-data

Smythe, S. (2023, August 2). Best road bike tires for summer riding 2025. Cycling Weekly. Retrieved February 24, 2025, from https://www.cyclingweekly.com/group-tests/choosing-the-best-road-bike-tyres-20156