"5 riders can finish in the top-20" - UAE DS warns Giro d'Italia competition after dominant performance
Cycling
It took us until the stage 7 to see a first UAE Team Emirates - XRG stage victory at the 2025 Giro d'Italia. The one to break this fasting was ultimately the team's leader Juan Ayuso who let no room for doubts on Tagliacozzo.
The Spaniard took the first victory of his professional career in a Grand Tour with a devastating attack with 500 meters to go. However the dominance of UAE Team Emirates - XRG was underlined thanks to another rider.
Isaac del Toro reached the finish line in 2nd position, moving up to the Top 3 overall, only 9 seconds behind Primoz Roglic, and 5 seconds behind his teammate Ayuso. Igor Arrieta did an incredible job on the final climb to Tagliacozzo, and Jay Vine was very active in the beginning of the stage. That's just Joxean Fernández Matxín's assessment.
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"It was incredible because of the work of all the riders," Matxín began by pointing out in statements published by UAE itself. "Jay Vine fought hard for the breakaway, then Baroncini was perfect all day, Arrieta in the final 2km."
"They are five guys who can finish maybe among the top 20 riders in the general classification," Matxín added, warning all his rivals.
It's not crazy. If you take a look at the general classification, these are the current positions of the UAE riders after stage 7:
| Position | Rider | Team | Time |
| 01 | Roglic Primoz | Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe | 24:32:30 |
| 02 | Ayuso Juan | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | + 04 |
| 03 | del Toro Isaac | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | + 09 |
| 07 | McNulty Brandon | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | + 34 |
| 15 | Yates Adam | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | + 48 |
| 23 | Majka Rafal | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | + 02:34 |
| 65 | Arrieta Igor | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | + 16:42 |
| 69 | Vine Jay | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | + 18:33 |
| 98 | Baroncini Filippo | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | + 33:3 |
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- POG1, another nice doc about our favourite, I watched most of it with a big smile on my face (except for the bits about his crashes 😢 obvs!).Lozza14-11-2026
- Martinez had a good year! 5th at the Tour was a great result for him, albeit largely through getting in successful breaks, but he held it better than Pidcock who’d done the same.Lozza14-11-2026
- guess what Valgren, you're 34, and no you're not good enough. sorry to say.mij14-11-2026
- I'm a sepp fan and like to think he earned that LOL, indulge me : ) I think Jonas was fine. Roglic did not want to concede to Sepp. and I don't think you ever attack your own teammate in the leaders jersey if he is holding his own, which Sepp just about was.mij14-11-2026
- enough time? he's 24 years old. He's won 10 races over the last 2 years and some are significant. I won't argue about his attitude being good - it needs to improve. But with some coaching and mentorship he has a lot of winning ahead of him and has plenty of time to win a GT. I don't think he will ever beat Tadej, but everyone else is fair game Look at Mas and Valverde - they were 31 and 29, respectively, when they won the Vuelta.mij14-11-2026
- Pogacar has a fine head on his shoulders.Careful investments and a couple of coffee shops sounds like a wonderful way to chill after an intense career.Stay healthy GOAT.
Brucegel14-11-2026 - I live in Maribor.PogiSloFans14-11-2026
- I live in Ljubljana and often go on trips in the surrounding area, where I frequently see young cyclists in 'Pogi Team' jerseys training, either alone or in groups. By simply motivating so many young people to take up cycling, Tadej has already achieved something truly significant.Velijo14-11-2026
- That's an excellent point. It's interesting that Vader came to that realization only after he learned that his contract wasn't going to be renewed.
santiagobenites14-11-2026
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