TREK TOP FUEL 8

£3,750 / 29in / trekbikes.com

Understated, verging on vanilla, there’s nothing head-turning about Trek’s new Top Fuel, but to write off this revamped short-travel ripper at first sight is to make a big mistake. Indeed, the Top Fuel is a two-wheeled equivalent of the Q car (or, sleeper to our friends across the pond) – the kind of unassuming, run-of-the-mill executive saloon that flies unobtrusively under the radar, but packs a knock-out punch under the bonnet. In other words, the kind of car preferred by ‘90s bank robbers. But before I elaborate on this bike’s unexpectedly blistering pace, let’s take a look at what’s changed for 2022.

Originally conceived as an XC race bike, it slowly morphed into a marathon bike around 2019, right about when XC race bikes became mainstream and capable enough to go marathon racing on (see Trek’s Olympic and World Cup winning Supercaliber).

So, the Top Fuel continues its slide sideways, slotting into the