2026 Scott

Gambler 20

The new Scott Gambler is a multi-faceted, shapeshifting race platform built to deliver at the highest echelons of downhill. Ironically, with so many parameters adaptable by the end user, Scott has shortened the odds of failure, and made this Gambler as safe a bet as possible. Scott Gambler need to know World Cup-ready downhill race bike boasting an array of adjustments Carbon frame with Integrated Suspension Technology (AKA a hidden shock) Six-bar linkage 210mm rear travel (depending on chainstay length) MX and 29in wheel compatibility (complete bikes come MX) 5 frame adjustments including chainstay, reach, progression and BB height Guided internal cable routing and dedicated entry ports Integrated sagometer also tells you how much travel you’re using 3 sizes – M, L, XL Two models – Gambler RC (£8,849) and Gambler 10 (£5,699) Racing doesn’t do certainties though, and while Canyon and, to a greater extent Orbea, have enjoyed notable success with their respective downhill bike launches this season, the planets have not aligned for Scott Factory Racing and its two stars, Benoit Coulanges and Ethan Craik. From what I’ve seen and experienced riding the bike, that’s no reflection on the performance of the new Gambler, and with the World Cup resuming in Les Gets this weekend, on home soil, perhaps Scott’s luck is about to change? But I’m no bookie. My job is to try and convey what this ultra-adaptable machine is like to ride for an average squid. And to that end I travelled out to Chatel, in the Portes du Soleil, for two days aboard the new Gambler, operating out of the very same pit set-up enjoyed by the full factory athletes. It doesn’t get much better than that. Frame Scott acquired the Swiss brand Bold in 2019 and shortly after embarked on a program of applying its signature hidden shock technology to the Scott MTB range. The first bike to have its damper concealed within the carbon chassis was the Spark in 2021, and four years later this new Gambler completes the adoption process. Not that the two bikes share much in common when it comes to the position or operation of the shock. More travel and bigger shocks have increased the packaging challenge considerably, so the design of the Gambler owes much to the engineering work done on the Ransom enduro bike. That particular model has 170mm of travel achieved through a complex six-bar linkage design, and it’s this basic layout that forms the backbone of the Gambler. The shock itself sits forward of the bottom bracket capped by large removable covers. So large are they, and so exposed is the shock with them removed, that it might be more accurate to describe the shock as sheltered, rather than concealed, within the frame. Making the shock easily removable by mechanics is, of course, an important consideration with any race bike, and the Gambler’s bits can be whipped out quicker than a rugby player on a pub crawl. Sufficient space has been provided for both coil …Continue reading »

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