Is Marzocchi's new Super Z 190mm single crown fork the burliest freeride fork on the market?
Designed to go big at Red Bull Rampage, the Marzocchi Super Z sports a massive 190mm of travel, 38mm stanchions, and a fancy new damper
Marzocchi has released a brand new ultra-burly single-crown fork called the Super Z. The Super Z answers Marzocchi athletes' call for a single-crown fork that could send the biggest jumps like a dual-crown fork at events like Red Bull Rampage.
The fork has already seen some Rampage action too, breaking cover last year fitted to Reed Boggs' deep custom Yeti SB165 and Thomas Genon's Canyon Torque and being ridden to two top-ten results.
The Super Z comes with 170mm, 180mm, or a huge 190mm of travel options making it one of the longest travel single crown forks currently available. To ensure stiffness on corners and heavy landings with so much travel, Marzocchi has used a 38mm stanchion and some chunky lowers.
With most single crowns maxing out at 180mm, the Marzocchi Super Z is one of the few single crown forks that offer 190mm of travel and finds itself positioned alongside the RockShox Zeb and EXT Era V2 LT.
Its burly build has a serious presence when fitted to a bike, however, it's what's specced inside that will make the Super Z stand out on the trail and the best mountain bike forks in Marzocchi's line-up.
Marzocchi has borrowed Fox's new GRIP X damper to maximize traction and suspension performance, which offers simple three-way adjustability (high-speed/low-speed compression and low-speed rebound). The high-speed dial on the top of the right leg gives a simple easy-to-adjustment and a firm mode. There are lower leg bleeders and bypass channels to avoid unwanted pressure building up and reducing fork sensitivity.
Tire clearance can fit a 2.6in tire and is rated for rotors between 200mm-230mm. The fork will be available in 29in with 170mm, 180mm, and 190mm of travel or 27.5in with 180mm of travel only. The 29in fork comes in Shiny Black or Gloss Red while the 27.5in fork only comes in Shiny Black. The weight is claimed to be 2,250g, although Marzocchi doesn't confirm which version of the Super Z this is for.
Marzocchi has priced the Super Z at $999 / £1,119, for more details head over to Marzocchi.com.
Graham Cottingham joined the BikePerfect team as our senior tech writer in 2020. With over 20 years of riding experience, he has dabbled in downhill, enduro, and gravel racing. Not afraid of a challenge, Graham has embraced bikepacking over the last few years and likes nothing more than strapping some bags to his bike and covering big miles to explore Scotland's wildernesses. When he isn’t shredding the gnar in the Tweed Valley, sleeping in bushes, or tinkering with bikes, he is writing tech reviews for BikePerfect.
Rides: Cotic SolarisMax, Stooge MK4, 24 Bicycles Le Toy 3, Surly Steamroller
Height: 177cm
Weight: 71kg