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A vintage Eddy Merckx team bike, believed by Cycling Weekly to date from around 1972, is part of UK collector Richard Hoddinott’s collection. The frame is too small to have been Merckx’s own, and its rider is unknown; a marking beneath the bottom bracket has not been conclusively explained.
Collector Richard Hoddinott owns a vintage Eddy Merckx team bike that Cycling Weekly identifies as likely dating from around 1972, during Merckx’s time with the Molteni team. The frame is too small to have been Merckx’s own, and neither its rider nor the meaning of a painted inscription beneath the bottom bracket has been established.
The bike is fitted with components including a Campagnolo chainset, Cinelli bars and stem, and a Unicanitor saddle. Hoddinott told Cycling Weekly that he values its handling and build, as well as its patina: worn decals, scratches and other signs of use that he leaves intact rather than restoring. One visible detail is a Nuovo Record chainring drilled in an uneven pattern.
The article describes the machine as a team bike from the late Molteni era and says it is almost certainly from 1972. That dating is an assessment, not a confirmed frame history. The report does not identify a particular team rider or document a specific race or stage on which this bike was used.
A painted note on the underside of the bottom bracket reads “K V.D. ELST.” Cycling Weekly raises the possibility that the K refers to Belgian entrepreneur Fernand Kessels and that the remaining letters refer to frame builder Marcel van der Este. It also says the mark could identify a shop or intended rider; the article offers no definitive answer.
A Team Bike Without a Named Rider
The bike offers a material connection to the equipment supply behind one of cycling’s most prominent teams, but its uncertain history also sets limits on what can be claimed about it. It is described as a Molteni-era team machine, not as a bicycle ridden by Merckx himself. Keeping that distinction clear matters: the frame’s size rules out the suggestion that it was his own bike, while the identity of any teammate who used it remains unknown.
For collectors and cycling-history readers, the surviving wear and components are part of the interest. Hoddinott’s decision not to restore the machine preserves its present condition, but patina alone does not establish a rider, race or exact year. The story is therefore as much about what the bike cannot confirm as about its connection to the team.
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Molteni and Merckx in 1972
Cycling Weekly places the bike in the period when Merckx’s Molteni team obtained bicycles through Belgian entrepreneur Fernand Kessels. According to the report, Kessels arranged bikes from several makers, including Colnago and De Rosa, and commissioned high-end frame builders such as Marcel van der Este. The article does not establish which builder made this particular frame.
The suggested 1972 date is notable because Merckx had a major season that year. Cycling Weekly reports that he won the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France, three Monuments—Milan–San Remo, Liège–Bastogne–Liège and Il Lombardia—and other events, including La Flèche Wallonne, the Trofeo Baracchi and the hour record in Mexico City. Those achievements provide period context, not proof that this bike accompanied him or a teammate in any of those races.
Hoddinott, who runs the vintage specialist The Velo Pages, has a collection of more than 100 bicycles, the report says. It includes machines associated with Tour de France history and British time-trial riders. His approach is to retain bikes in the condition in which he acquired them, treating marks and wear as part of their history.
““There’s a unique quality to this bike. The handling is very purposeful; it’s special.””
— Richard Hoddinott, owner of The Velo Pages, speaking to Cycling Weekly
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The Frame Marking Has No Answer
The bike’s exact year, builder and original rider are not confirmed in the report. Cycling Weekly calls a 1972 date highly likely, but does not provide a frame record or other documentation that settles it. The frame is described as too small for Merckx, and the article’s suggestion that a teammate may have ridden it is speculation rather than an identified history.
The meaning of “K V.D. ELST” is also unresolved. It might refer to Kessels and van der Este, but the report says it could instead relate to a shop or a rider for whom the bike was intended after team use. There is no stated evidence that selects among those explanations.
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No Provenance Update Reported
Cycling Weekly’s account does not announce an upcoming sale, authentication review or new research into the bike. For now, the machine remains in Hoddinott’s collection, and the reported inscription remains unexplained. A dated team record, builder documentation or verifiable account from an original rider could clarify its history, but no such evidence is identified in the article.
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Key Questions
Did Eddy Merckx ride this bike?
The report says the frame is too small to have been Merckx’s own. It does not identify another rider or confirm that the bike was used in a particular race.
When was the bike made?
Cycling Weekly describes it as a late Molteni-era team bike and says it is almost certainly from around 1972. The date is an estimate, not a documented certainty.
Who owns the bike now?
The bike is owned by Richard Hoddinott, a UK collector and owner of the vintage specialist The Velo Pages.
What does the marking beneath the bottom bracket mean?
The inscription reads “K V.D. ELST.” The report suggests possible links to Fernand Kessels and frame builder Marcel van der Este, but says the mark could have another meaning. It remains unexplained.
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