Introducing the Maxxis Assegai Tire (Designed by Greg Minnaar)

Maxxis is THE tire company of mountain biking. A bold statement but it is backed by years of rubber experience in multiple industries and multiple world titles throughout these industries. New for 2018 Maxxis has released a completely new tire to their already extensive line-up, the Assegai. A new Approach at a downhill intended tire designed no other than Greg Minnaar himself.

“I wanted something that sounded sharp and aggressive, and that’s how I ended up calling my tire the Assegai! The Assegai is a traditional Zulu warrior spear, the Zulu being the traditional tribe of KwaZulu Natal, the region of South Africa where I was born and raised.” -Greg Minnaar

 The Assegai is the result of 2 years of constant trial and error to create the ltimate and versatile Downhill intended tire. The Assegai can also be used on standard trail bikes too as it is not limited by its design. The design was derived by combining certain features from some of Greg’s favorite tires that also happen to be some of the most popular tires in mountain biking; the Minion DHF, DHR II, Shorty, and High Roller. It is not every day that an actual racer gets to design the tire but Greg put in the work for what he needed.

“My idea was to design a tire around some of Maxxis’ iconic tread patterns. I started in the center by combining the Minion DHF and the Minion DHR II. The reasoning behind this was I felt the surface area of the DHF rolls well and gives you a good footprint on hard-pack, greasy turns as well as confidence on wet roots and rocks. The DHR II added faster rolling speed and more aggressive braking. Then I worked on the ‘extra’ tooth to give you more support when leaning the bike over so there’s a consistent feel all the way onto the side knobs. And that leaves me talking about my all-time favorite tire the High Roller. Maxxis engineers and I came up with a remodeled High Roller side knob with very similar characteristics to the original. But with the support the extra tooth gives you, you have the ultimate wingman when cutting hard on a flat turn. Finally, I took the height of the knobs from the Shorty. The knobs are well supported, so the extra height aggressively bites into loam and dry, dusty conditions.” -Greg Minnaar

Specs

The Maxxis Assegai is initially available only in a downhill spec - naturally. Other features of the Assegai include:

• 27.5 x 2.50 and 29 x 2.50 sizes
• Wide Trail casing optimized for 30-35mm wide rims
• Maxxis’ legendary 3C MaxxGrip rubber compound
• Dual-ply casing with butyl sidewall inserts for stability and durability
• Tubeless compatibility
• Folding Bead