Pirelli has a Cinturato tire for every gravel occasion with the Cinturato RC gravel tire taking on racing duties. Specifically designed to target races like the World Gravel Series and Unbound, Pirelli has reconfigured its Scorpion XC RC cross-country race tire to offer higher average speed on straight lines and improved grip for aggressive off-road cornering. Pirelli aims the Cinturato RC as the best gravel bike tire for riders looking for an injection of speed without going to a semi-slick, so how does it perform on gravel roads?
Design and specifications
For the fast-rolling center section of the Cinturato RC Pirelli has used a similar directional arrow center pattern to the dry weather Cinturato H and Cinturato Adventure tires. You start to see the Scorpion XC RC influence when moving to the mid and shoulder tread blocks, featuring wider-spaced transitional blocks and pronounced shoulder lugs.
The Cinturato RC features Pirelli’s SpeedGRIP Compound, based on its SmartGRIP MTB compound the SpeedGRIP has been further developed for the fast-rolling off-road requirements of gravel. The TechWALL Gravel carcass adapts Pirelli’s road-specific reinforced casings with the MTB-specific casings, adding a cut-resistant 120tpi nylon fabric from bead to bead to the 60tpi casing for added protection.
Pirelli sells the Cinturato RC in 700c by 35mm, 40mm, and 45mm widths which should cover most fast gravel use cases. Fitted to a set of 25mm Zipp 303 Firecrest wheels the 40mm tires blew up to their quoted width and held pressure well. The tire is available in black or with a Classic tan wall colorway in all three width options. A set of 45mm tires weighs in at 636g on my scales, it's not heavy but in the marginal gains of gravel racing they are carrying a few more grams compared to the equivalent Schwalbe’s G-One RS or Michelin’s Power Gravel tires.
Performance
The Cinturato RC certainly rolls with a reasonable amount of urgency, it doesn’t feel as quick as the fastest gravel tires on the market but it spins up and holds speed well. While some gravel tires have a wide margin for optimal pressures, I found the Cinturato RC required more pressure precision to get the most from it. I settled on around 37 psi for my size 40mm review tires but even a couple of psi differences would have a noticeable effect on comfort and speed.
Cornering is superb and the Cinturato RC confidently leans into corners and bites into the ground for traction allowing fast lines to be carved through bends. Handling is stable and predictable across various surfaces and conditions too so you aren’t likely to get caught out on fast tight bends or a sudden change in terrain.
While it would be unfair to expect huge amounts of traction from the relatively shallow center tread, the Cinturato RC has a nasty habit of suddenly snapping free under hard braking in dry loose conditions. It's not the most effective tire for soft climbs either and I found it demanded a little more attention to weight distribution to ensure the rear wheel didn’t spin out.
The puncture protection has been effective and I only suffered a single flat over the 1800km I used these tires, despite battering them down some fast and rough gravel descents around Aberfoyle and other local gravel favorites. That said, if you are riding rocky terrain semi-regularly you may be better served with Pirelli’s Cinturato RC X which adds a touch more sidewall protection for a little extra peace of mind and minimal additional grams. Having put a load of miles on the Cinturato RC, the rate of tread wear has been pretty reasonable too, especially considering this is a race-focused tire.
Verdict
The Pirelli Cinturato RC is a decent all-rounder gravel race tire that rolls quickly and corners confidently when you need to ride fast. It's worth fiddling a little to find your right pressures, but once you settle on a happy balance the Cinturato RC performs well in most conditions. Still, the tread's emphasis on speed means the Cinturato RC excels on more groomed gravel surfaces and rolling terrain, rather than steep gradients with soft or loose over hard track textures.
Tech specs: Pirelli Cinturato RC gravel tire
- Price: $84.90 / £60.99 / €69.90
- Weight: 636g (700x45mm)
- Sizes: 700 x 35mm, 40mm, 45mm
- Colors: Black, Classic Tan
