When the nervous peloton began their long, slow ascent up out of the Adda River valley to Bormio to finish Stage 17 of the Giro d'Italia, I thought Isaac Del Toro was cooked. The 21-year-old Mexican rider had put up an admirable fight for the first 16 stages of the Giro, and though he'd clung on to the maglia rosa leader's jersey longer than anyone expected he'd be able to, third weeks of Grand Tours are unforgiving, especially for a young rider who has never faced the pressure of defending a leader's jersey before.
One day earlier, Del Toro cracked on the San Valentino, losing over 90 seconds to the hardened Richard Carapaz and the moderately hardened Simon Yates; one climb earlier, Carapaz and Yates made him quiver. It stood to reason that Del Toro's infirmity would compound, and the veterans would do him the courtesy of easing the pain of carrying the jersey. Instead, he seized the initiative and smoked everyone to win his first Grand Tour stage in style.
Carapaz first tested Del Toro on the Mortirolo, breaking him roughly a kilometer from the top and linking up with Georg Steinhauser, Carapaz's teammate from the earlier break. Most riders in his situation would either panic, burning too much energy trying to immediately chase down Carapaz and his teammate, or simply give up, knowing that two more punishing stages awaited at the end of the week. Del Toro did neither, calmly helping reknit the GC group together and conducting a patient chase. After UAE, then Red Bull, then Bahrain reeled back the remnants of the break, Del Toro made his move near the top of the day's final climb. Only Carapaz could follow. The duo reached old man Romain Bardet (who praised Del Toro, saying, "He takes the corners like a criminal"), and once the road tipped back up into the long false flat, Del Toro leapt away. Nobody could follow.
Here's a trap: Del Toro is 21, races for UAE, and is in position to win his first Grand Tour after spinning around at the Vuelta as a 20-year-old. Those descriptors also all applied, back in 2020, to his teammate Tadej Pogacar, right before he won his first Tour de France and seized control of the sport. It is therefore extremely easy to slip into describing Del Toro's performance and promise in terms of Pogacar (Del Toro himself greased the slide, so to speak, by hitting a signature Pogacar celebration upon crossing the line). They are very different riders, with different styles and instincts, though the comparison becomes less heretical with each successive performance. Del Toro could totally go win this Giro, which would make the comparison inevitable, even logical.
Another similarity between the 2025 Giro and the 2020 Tour de France is that Primoz Roglic was the favorite for both races and won neither. Both losses are faintly tragic, because that's the sort of rider Roglic is, though that's as far as the similarities go. Del Toro's strong ride doesn't feel much like Pogacar's because he's had to play defense for so long, where Pogacar simply took the yellow jersey on a time trial at the very end of the race. Roglic entered this Giro as co-favorites with Juan Ayuso, another young UAE talent, and the pair were thought of as slightly ahead of a large field that included Carapaz, Yates, the other Yates twin Adam, Antonio Tiberi, and—if you were feeling optimistic to the point of delusion—Egan Bernal. Typically, every Giro and Vuelta requires you to furnish a long list of contenders, though rarely does a Grand Tour stay as dynamic as this Giro has.
While Mads Pedersen and his indomitable helper Mathias Vacek have dominated the sprinters' and stage-hunters' days, the group of GC contenders has fought a fascinating battle. First it was Roglic, riding into and out of the maglia rosa a couple of times before Ayuso won the first mountain stage. The first decisive GC day wouldn't be a traditional mountain pass day but a gravel day, as Wout van Aert won an impressive Strade Bianche clone stage in Siena on Stage 9. But behind him, Del Toro seized power.
His performance on Stage 9 was a starmaking one, as he rode with bravery and intelligence to stay clear of the inevitable chaos that comes when the peloton tackles gravel roads, and then with brutal strength once the chaos opened gaps for him to ride clear. Bernal was incredible, van Aert earned a beautiful win, but it was Del Toro who was the best rider on the best Grand Tour stage in years. He churned away for the last 15 kilometers, with van Aert in a tactically advantageous position of being able to hitch a free ride on Del Toro's wheel. When the literal dust settled, he was ahead of Ayuso by more than a minute.
What was most notable about the leadership crisis that followed was how calmly Del Toro handled it. He never deferred to his leader, but he never asked for a gift. He knew he wouldn't win the race if he wasn't stronger than Ayuso, so he let the road decide. It did, though it also bucked him. He hit Stage 17 with a slim, 26-second lead. That's nothing given what's coming on Friday, yet instead of riding defensively, he took the fight to Carapaz and Yates today.
It's impossible not to root for someone that confident, who does not appear to feel the pressure of the maglia rosa, Mexican cycling history, or past winners of this race breathing down his neck. He won't lose this Giro; someone will have to win it over him. The field has two chances left to keep him from making history.
