The pedal market has been a little boring in recent times, with the market-leading brands set in their ways and offering little if any innovation. No company is more dominant in this space than Shimano, and its SPD-SL road pedals have hardly changed in recent years.

First released with Dura-Ace 7900, Shimano has offered its SPD-SL pedals with a carbon body since 2010. Prior to this, it was much the same pedal design, just in alloy. This carbon trend continues with the latest generation, and its a few grams lighter. Shimano clearly feels is a better fit for the performance rider.

Much like Shimano’s new 9100 groupsets, the pedals have been treated to a stealthy black finish. It’s a great change and one will surely enjoy these pedals without having to worry about the obvious branding mismatch.

It’s here that Dura-Ace pedals hide an advantage over Ultegra and lower models, with an added needle bearing row inside providing addition support and durability. They also hold a three-year warranty, compared to the two years you get with all other Shimano pedals.

It has bearing placement at both ends of the platform that offers symmetrical load dispersion. Pedals silky-smooth rotation with stable load distribution delivers superior pedaling performance on your bicycle.

Maximum performance is achieved with close-to-the axle pedal/cleat interface.

Adjustable tension settings allow the cleat tension to be tuned to the individual rider’s preference.