The Fulcrum wheels are paired with 25mm tubular Continental Grand Prix TT ALX tyres - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
The new frameset sees oversized carbon tubing junctions sharing a similar aesthetic to the Canyon Speedmax - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
A Shimano Di2 charging and adjustment port is located at the bottom of the main frame triangle - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Shimano Dura-Ace R9150 derailleurs provide the shifting on Nibali's Merida - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
A cable tie holds the Di2 cable to a proprietary, direct-mount rear derailleur hanger and also out of the wind - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
The Bahrain-Merida logo and bold decals adorn the seat cluster on the frameset - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Nibali opts for a low stack on his time trial setup - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
White, red and gold decals decorate the frameset - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Bahrain-Merida uses Elite Crono CX bottle cages on the time trial frameset - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Nibali uses an unbranded Fulcrum 55T AC3 front carbon wheel - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Grip tape on the base bars reduces weight and improves aerodynamics - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
A look at Nibali's Vision cockpit - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
More grip tape at the top of the handlebar extensions and Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 shifters - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Vincenzo Nibali and his Bahrain-Merida teammates use Shimano Dura-Ace R9100 pedals - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
A look at the front profile of Nibali's Merida Time Warp TT - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Flat profiled base bars will contribute to aerodynamic performance - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Nibali pairs his Time Warp TT with the short Prologo Dimension Nack saddle - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
As with the majority of aero framesets, the Merida Time Warp TT has a truncated, proprietary seatpost - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
A number one sticker on the rear of the seat tube denotes Nibali's first choice race bike - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Vincenzo Nibali and his Bahrain-Merida teammates lined up for stage three of the Tour de France in the team time trial in Cholet aboard new and unseen Merida time trial framesets.
Until today the Merida Time Warp TT hadn't been tested in a race scenario and it is understood it was only very recently approved by the UCI for racing — it doesn't appear on the UCI approved frames and forks list yet either.
The frameset features a complete overhaul from the existing Merida Warp TT frameset design, with the most obvious change being the oversized tubing junctions, which form triangular sections at the seat cluster, head tube cluster and bottom bracket area — a design that shares similarities with Canyon’s Speedmax frameset.
The frameset uses a Vision Metron Trimax carbon cockpit, with Nibali opting to use grip tape rather than handlebar tape on the base bars and handlebar extensions.
Nibali opts for a low stack on his time trial setup - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Shimano Dura-Ace R9150 components provided the shifting and braking for Nibali’s time trial setup, while an SRM Origin crankset with Shimano Dura-Ace 9000 series chainrings sat at the head of the drivetrain.
Photographed with 56/44 chainrings, like the majority of the peloton, Nibali used a 58-tooth outer chainring for the team time trial on stage three of the Tour.
Fulcrum carbon wheels were paired with 25mm Continental Grand Prix ALX tubular tyres and Nibali opted for a Prologo Dimension saddle.
Click or swipe through the gallery above for a closer look at the new time trial frameset from Merida.
