According to leaked documents online, the new Specialized Tarmac will reportedly be known as the SL8, will be "the world's fastest race bike", will be lighter and faster, and will boast an increase in stiffness to weight when compared to the outgoing SL7.
But, you didn't really need leaked documents to tell you any of that. Specialized's Tarmac has gained an additional SL in each updated iteration for well in excess of a decade, with the SL7 replacing the SL6 in 2020, which replaced the SL5 before it, and so on. Plus, lighter, faster and stiffer have been the industry's favourite buzzwords in the past half-decade – perhaps alongside 'vertically compliant' and 'integrated' – so it would be unsurprising to see those terms used on a brand's flagship race bike, and no brand markets a bike more vigorously than Specialized.
