Epic 9 represents 24 years of winning XC innovation, distilled into the fastest race bike in the world.<br>We started with Epic 8’s world-beating benchmark. Then removed what held it back. 206 grams gone, making Epic 9 the lightest full-suspension XC race bike on the planet.<br>Then we cut suspension friction by 11% and refined the kinematics. The result: unmatched efficiency, capability, and speed per watt.<br>Speed emerges as the natural outcome of a bike so seamlessly integrated around the rider that it disappears, leaving only the rider’s full potential, realized

This bike is built around a FACT 11m carbon frame with progressive XC race geometry and Specialized’s Rider-First Engineered™ design, which tunes the ride quality for each frame size. The frame offers 120mm of travel, a threaded bottom bracket, a 12x148mm UDH-compatible rear dropout, and internal cable routing, and it is optimized for wireless drivetrains. It also includes the SWAT Box 2.0 assembly for on-board storage and a Specialized 34.9 alloy seat binder with a steel bolt.

Suspension comes from RockShox’s top-tier Flight Attendant system. Up front, the SID Ultimate Flight Attendant fork delivers 120mm of travel with a Debon Air spring, a 15x110mm axle, and a 44mm offset. It is paired with a SIDLuxe Ultimate Flight Attendant rear shock in a 190x45mm size with a Solo Air spring. Both feature a three-position setup developed with Ride Dynamics, letting the system adjust automatically to the terrain. Stopping power is handled by SRAM Motive Silver hydraulic disc brakes with four-piston calipers, using a 180mm rotor in front and a 160mm rotor in the rear.

The drivetrain is a fully wireless SRAM X0 Eagle Transmission setup, shifted with a SRAM AXS POD controller and running a 12-speed flattop chain over a SRAM XS 1295 cassette with a 10–52 range. Power goes through a SRAM/Quarq XO Eagle power meter crankset with a 34-tooth chainring, sized at 165mm cranks for small frames and 170mm for medium through extra-large, spinning on a SRAM DUB threaded wide bottom bracket.

The bike rolls on Roval Control SL VI hookless carbon wheels with a 29mm inner width, built tubeless-ready on DT Swiss 350 hubs and laced with DT Revolution straight-pull spokes. The tires are 29x2.35 with Flex Lite casings and T5/T7 compounds, pairing a Specialized Fast Trak up front with an Air Trak in the rear, and the bike ships with lightweight Specialized TPU inner tubes.

In the cockpit, a Bike Yoke Divine SL 30.9 dropper post offers 100mm of travel on small frames and 125mm on medium through extra-large. Riders steer with a Roval Control SL flat bar measuring 760mm wide with a 35mm clamp, 10mm of rise, 6 degrees of upsweep, and 8 degrees of backsweep, mounted to a Roval alloy XC two-bolt stem in 60mm or 70mm lengths. Contact points are finished with Specialized Trail Grips and a Specialized Power Expert saddle with titanium rails, 155mm wide on small frames and 143mm on medium through extra-large