“Defending a lead is never easy, but 52 seconds is a lot” – UAE back Isaac del Toro to seal Deutschland Tour after decisive attack topples Visma advantage
CyclingSaturday, 22 August 2026 at 18:25
Isaac del Toro will start the final stage of the Deutschland Tour with a 52-second overall lead after UAE Team Emirates – XRG dismantled Team Visma | Lease a Bike’s defence on the road to Bad Durkheim. The Mexican overturned a six-second deficit to Louis Barre, leaving his team confident of completing the job around Heilbronn.
Nils Politt, who won the Deutschland Tour himself in 2021, helped set up the move that put Del Toro back into the leader’s jersey. Afterwards, the German made clear UAE recognise the work still required but believe their advantage should prove decisive. “Defending a lead is never easy, but 52 seconds is a lot. We’ll see how we can get it done and win the Deutschland Tour,” Politt told ARD.
Politt and Morgado set up decisive attack
Politt drove the pace on the Rotsteig before Antonio Morgado accelerated with Del Toro on his wheel. Barre initially tried to follow when the Mexican attacked but could not close the gap, leaving Visma chasing the race they had previously controlled.
Giulio Pellizzari joined Del Toro at the front, and the pair stayed clear all the way to Bad Durkheim. Pellizzari took the stage victory unchallenged, while Del Toro strengthened his overall advantage with three bonus seconds at the final intermediate sprint and another six for second place.
Barre finished 49 seconds behind the leading pair, turning his narrow overnight advantage into a substantial deficit ahead of the final day.
UAE must now defend Del Toro’s lead over a 156.5km stage starting and finishing in Heilbronn. The route features three ascents of the Jagerhaus, each measuring 2.3km at 5.2%, with the final summit approximately 12km from the finish.
Barre remains second overall, 52 seconds behind Del Toro, with Marc Hirschi third. All to play for on Sunday.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- i’d like to see him get another roubaix, mayyyybee another msr or flanders (tough) and one more tdf stage, then move to mountain bike full time until he gets the world championship he wants so badly.OCexile22-08-2026
- @SLOMOU: I’ve always compared 2024 to Merckx’s year of 3 monuments and 2 tours, ‘72 I think or maybe ‘73, basically because I think of the worlds as a monument that keeps changing location. That’s not worth arguing about, honestly, because I can see it both ways. But this season? This is absurdly good, and nothing is stopping him so far. It’s a wonder to watch.RidesHills22-08-2026
- Was Pog towed by the motorbikes. They were bit closer than other riders. Food for thought .Pog fan but sad that Tarling was denied.paultryan200222-08-2026
- Objectively hes actually on pace to crush the best cycling season of all time..Im not a fan of him but its astonishing to see it really is i have to admit.miguel22-08-2026
- You're absolutely right in saying: If all this works out, we're watching the best cycling season ever. Pogi had the best cycling season in history in 2024, but this year he will surpass that if he wins the Vuelta, WC and Lombardy. I'm also not surprised, but proud and happy for my compatriot.PogiSloFans22-08-2026
- Another example on stage 3 that Visma isnt strong enough to controll anything. UAE with Del toro and pelizzari just played with Visma again. Same thing every race all yearmiguel22-08-2026
- Did I expect that? Of course I did, who didn't? But did I really expect that? No way in hell was that supposed to actually happen. Hayter rode an incredible time trial, and for a second time it's less than a second that it took for Pogačar to win a time trial. (He's now won a TT in every grand tour.) So am I surprised? Not really. 20 wins this season already? And the whole Vuelta still ahead of him? If all this works out, we're watching the best cycling season ever. He could end up with 4 monuments (and a 2nd on the 5th), 2 grand tours, and the worlds. Will I be surprised if he does? Not really.RidesHills22-08-2026
- Grischa left mid season, coaches left mid sesaon many riders left mid contact all these is nothing to aknowlegdge all these things are a matter of a fact. This TDF Visma was incredible weak too so easy to see and so bad for jonas all tour untill he crashes, im sorry but i doubt you watch much cycling if you cant aknowledge that visma is getting worse alot now. They cant keep up with rbh and lidl like the owner has said so if you cant aknowledge these things im sorry but your not worth talking much to as i dont think you watch that much cycling then hehe. Its just a matter of facts all these things i mentioned im sorry wish you all the bestmiguel22-08-2026
- hopefully they do cause they need something I think we can agree on that that the trend is not in their favour last years. Ballerini is decent my problem hes another sprinter doesnt really help jonas at all. But hopefully they can sign someone really good that would be good but i doubt they have the needs but lets see.miguel22-08-2026
- fingers crossed!Ketterechts22-08-2026
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