Isaac del Toro’s record for Tour de France road stages now reads: one stage ridden, one stage won. The 22-year-old started the 2026 race as Tadej Pogačar’s star domestique but became the story on stage two, when he crossed the line first, shepherded by his team leader.
Del Toro’s talent has been evident since he moved to UAE Team Emirates XRG at the start of the 2025 season, thanks to a string of stellar results, but the Mexican announced himself to a wider audience after a show-stopping late attack in Barcelona.
That brought to a close a thrilling opening weekend in Barcelona, with Jonas Vingegaard announcing his return to form by putting himself in the yellow jersey on stage one, before Pogačar and del Toro fired back on stage two.
This is what you need to know about one of cycling’s brightest young talents.
1. He is Mexico's biggest cycling star in nearly 30 years
Born to a family of cyclists in Ensenada, Baja California, in November 2003, del Toro joined the A.R. Monex Pro Cycling Team as a 15-year-old in 2019.
A.R. Monex is focused on developing Mexican talent and del Toro is the country’s biggest star since Raúl Alcalá, who won two stages of the Tour de France in the 1980s. Alcalá also won the white jersey in 1987 and finished in the top 10 overall on three occasions.
Del Toro’s amateur breakthrough came in 2023 when he became the first Mexican rider to win the Tour de l'Avenir – the under-23 equivalent of the Tour de France and a proven launching pad for future Grand Tour champions, including Pogačar in 2018.
Del Toro and Pogačar then became team-mates in 2024, with del Toro signing a three-year deal with UAE Team Emirates-XRG.
Isaac del Toro
- Age: 22
- Born: Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
- Team: UAE Team Emirates XRG
- Stage race wins: Vuelta a Burgos (2025), UAE Tour (2026), Tirreno–Adriatico (2026) Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (2026)
2. He finished on the Giro d'Italia podium aged 21
Del Toro made an immediate impact at UAE Team Emirates-XRG, winning stage two of the Tour Down Under and finishing third overall. He also won a stage of the Vuelta a Asturias en route to taking the title.
Top 10 finishes at the Tirreno-Adriatico and Itzulia Basque Country stage races, and a sixth-place finish in the UCI World Championships road race, alongside a Grand Tour debut at the Vuelta a Espana, cemented del Toro’s reputation as one of cycling’s hottest prospects.
Del Toro stepped things up a gear in 2025, with a string of victories in Italian one-day races, including Milano-Torino, and a second-place finish in the Giro d’Italia behind Simon Yates.
Racing only his second Grand Tour, del Toro won stage 17 in the Italian Alps and claimed the white jersey as the race’s best young rider after spending much of the Giro in the maglia rosa.
Del Toro had pulled on the Giro’s leader’s pink jersey after stage nine, when he finished second behind Wout van Aert from a two-man breakaway, and only relinquished the lead on stage 20.
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3. He has a string of major WorldTour victories in 2026
Del Toro lined up at the start of the Tour de France as one of the peloton’s most prolific winners in 2026, thanks to overall wins at the UAE Tour, Tirreno-Adriatico and the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
The latter – previously known as the Critérium du Dauphiné – has long been seen as the key Tour de France warm-up race and, with Pogačar focusing on the Tour de Suisse, Del Toro took on leadership duties for UAE Team Emirates-XRG.
With Pogačar winning the Tour de Suisse at a canter, UAE arrived at the Tour not only with the dominant Slovenian targeting a record-equalling fifth victory, but with del Toro making his debut as one of the strongest domestiques in the peloton. Indeed, del Toro’s credentials would make him team leader in just about any other squad.
4. Tadej Pogačar thinks he could win the Tour de France
Del Toro has made an instant impact on the Tour de France, not only by winning stage two but by Pogačar effectively gifting his team-mate the win after the pair had distanced Jonas Vingegaard.
Vingegaard’s Visma Lease-a-Bike squad may have fired the first warning shots at the Tour, having won stage one’s team time trial, but Pogačar fired back instantly and underlined his ability when the road ramps up, and the strength of the team supporting him.
Ahead of the 2026 Tour de France, defending champion Pogačar named his young UAE Team Emirates-XRG teammate as a potential future Tour winner – even joking that Del Toro could win this year's race.
"I don't think he (Vingegaard) is the only one who can come close,” said Pogačar, who shared his press conference with del Toro. “There are a few guys here who can aim for the victory, including this guy next to me."
Pogačar is, of course, the favourite for the 2026 Tour, but, in del Toro, who has now signed a contract extension to 2029, he has one of the strongest riders in the race at his side.
It‘s seven years since Team Ineos’ Egan Bernal and Geraint Thomas finished first and second overall at the Tour de France. Don’t rule out del Toro playing a major role in the GC while also supporting Pogačar.
