Elite performance can be intimidating. It can also be pure fun.
Factor has just done the most unexpected thing a competitive bike brand can do: take its most serious machine—the ONE, the aerodynamic weapon raced in the WorldTour—and dress it up with SpongeBob and Patrick Star. Yes, those two.
The Tour that opens doors
The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift has something different about it. The race is relentless—pressure, speed, risk, the highest physical demands of the sport—but around it, the atmosphere is surprisingly open.
Families close to the action. Teams and riders visible and accessible. Curiosity and intensity in equal measure. The feeling that the best race in the world can pass through your town and, for an instant, belong to everyone on the roadside.
Factor wanted to contribute to that—and take it beyond the usual cycling audience.
The Factor ONE represents the limit of what is allowed by the UCI on the road: demanding engineering, assertive aesthetics, designed for the toughest competition in the world. For many people, a machine of that level can also seem distant, intimidating. SpongeBob and Patrick Star are the perfect entry point: familiar, optimistic, fun. They don't detract from the bike's or the race's seriousness. They make them more approachable.
Bikini Bottom through a scalpel
To bring this to life, Factor has partnered with Mighty Jaxx and its design studio XXRAY, known for their series of "dissected" figures that show the anatomical interiors of the most iconic pop culture characters. The result is two special editions of the ONE: the Factor ONE XXRAY PLUS SpongeBob SquarePants Edition and the Factor ONE XXRAY PLUS Patrick Star Edition.
The contrast is deliberate. Factor's engineering precision crosses with XXRAY's playful gaze beneath SpongeBob and Patrick's skin, resulting in bikes that are serious in purpose but unexpected in character. The graphics transform the brand's most awarded racing chassis into a rolling piece of pop culture, without sacrificing an inch of the control, aerodynamic efficiency, or handling demanded by top-tier competition.
Aero first
The bayonet fork + "chin" fairing system is perhaps the ONE's most recognizable feature, but it's not just about cutting through the air: it dictates where the air goes next, ensuring a cleaner flow throughout the entire assembly. The design controls the flow at the front and maintains aerodynamic advantage even at challenging crosswind angles.
Modern Geometry
The elite cyclist's position has changed: narrower handlebars, more forward saddles, shorter cranks. Everything pushes the rider's weight towards the front wheel. Without very careful geometry, this can unbalance the handling. The ONE maintains the same steering geometry across all its sizes, even the smallest—something unusual for a high-performance bike.
Debut at the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift
The two special editions will debut at the most prestigious women's WorldTour race on the calendar, ridden by Human Powered Health and Ma Petite Entreprise. Factor will also be joined by Xaverine Nirere and Mary Aleper from Team Amani, who will share the final stages with Human Powered Health and also compete in the Étape du Tour, experiencing some of France's most historic climbs firsthand.
The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift 2026 will take place from Saturday, August 1st to Sunday, August 9th, with the Grand Départ in Lausanne (Switzerland). This edition marks the first time the race climbs Mont Ventoux, includes an individual time trial for the first time, and closes with a final stage in Nice with four ascents of the Col d'Èze. It will be the longest and hilliest edition in the race's history.
