“I had to choose between crashing on my own or hitting Tadej”: Isaac Del Toro sacrifices his own skin to save the yellow jersey before bouncing back to claim white
CyclingSunday, 19 July 2026 at 23:00
Isaac Del Toro bounced back with an impressive ride on stage 15 of the Tour de France, reclaiming the white jersey after finishing third behind Remco Evenepoel and teammate Tadej Pogacar. The Mexican overcame a crash earlier in the stage and revealed afterward that he deliberately chose to fall rather than collide with the yellow jersey, before praising Pogacar for his support.
Del Toro battles through pain to reclaim white
After looking vulnerable on recent mountain stages, Del Toro returned to his best on the climb to Plateau de Solaison. The 22-year-old stayed with Pogacar in the decisive group before crossing the line in third place, enough to move back into the lead of the young rider classification ahead of Paul Seixas.
The stage was not without drama, however. Del Toro was involved in the same incident that forced Jonas Vingegaard to abandon with a broken collarbone.
“I think it was a slightly tricky roundabout,” Del Toro said in words after the stage. “The signage wasn't very good, so maybe the first Visma riders didn't take the best line, and we followed them.”
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The Mexican then had to make a split-second decision. “After that, I had to choose between crashing on my own or hitting Tadej, so I preferred to crash on my own.”
Although he quickly got back on his bike, the effects of the fall became more noticeable as the race progressed. “Honestly, at the time I felt pretty good, but once I got back into the rhythm, I started feeling pain in my back and my left leg.”
“Despite that, I was happy to keep committing to the team and follow the plan. But yes, today I had to deal with some extra pain.”
Del Toro and Evenepoel after stage 15 of the Tour de France 2026
High praise for Pogacar's support
Despite his injuries, Del Toro stayed with the race favorites for much of the final climb before finishing third behind Evenepoel and Pogacar, reclaiming the white jersey with one week remaining. The Mexican reserved special praise for his teammate, who once again put the team's objectives ahead of individual ambitions by helping Del Toro during the stage.
“It's incredible to see how willing this guy is to help me,” Del Toro said of Pogacar. “For me, he's someone exceptional.”
Del Toro admitted he was not completely satisfied with how he handled the final kilometers but was pleased with the overall outcome. “I really tried to give everything today. I may have made a few mistakes in the finale, but I'm very happy with how the day went. We just need to do a little better in the final, and everything will be perfect.”
For the first time in this Tour, Del Toro also openly acknowledged that a place on the final podium in Paris is now a realistic objective. Until now, he had deliberately avoided talking about the general classification, preferring to take the race day by day.
“Now, after today, I think it's possible to achieve the podium. It's something I've been trying to ignore and just let the race unfold, but now I really think it's possible,” he concluded.
Félix SernaCycling Journalist
Félix Serna is a writer at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2025. He covers professional cycling across both the men’s and women’s calendars, with a focus on UCI rankings, race developments, and rider performance. His work includes interview-based reports, liveblogs, and tournament coverage designed to provide clear, accurate context throughout the season.
In his reporting, Félix regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical reference. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available. He holds a bachelor’s degree in International Studies.
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- So only non contenders should be woken up at 2am or 5am.
Andrew20-07-2026 - I don't believe a single (true) contender for the Tour has ever been awoken at 2am or even 5am.awp20-07-2026
- He is going to be one of the best or the best ever when he calls it donemd197520-07-2026
- So only none notable riders should ever be woken up and tested? It sucks, but it is what it is.Andrew20-07-2026
- crashes suck, and not to be cavalier, but they are a part of cycling. a better rider uses speed on descents to his advantage. of course in this case Jonas was ahead, but he might have been pushing a bit too hard. very unfortunate for him and the race. I really wanted to see an Alpe d’Huez battle royale between them.mij20-07-2026
- yeah, it was just a great finish all the way around. I like Remco. I like Tadej. IDT is awesome too. I was happy to see a contested finish.mij20-07-2026
- My question: What about in other years during the Tour since the introduction of CADF in 2015? The Answer: In other years, there are very few (if any) well-documented cases of notable riders being publicly woken in the middle of the night for doping tests during the Tour de France itself. The 2026 incident with Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard appears to be a rare, high-profile example that drew significant attention. Pre-2026 ContextNighttime testing capability was introduced around 2015 by the UCI/CADF (now ITA) to counter potential micro-dosing of substances like EPO, which could clear by morning. Some tests occurred before the Tour (out-of-competition), and riders were occasionally woken then. During the race, strict French legal restrictions often limited or blocked true middle-of-the-night tests (e.g., 11 p.m.–6 a.m. window required specific suspicions and approvals). Most controls happened early morning (~6–7 a.m.) or post-stage. No major news stories highlight specific notable riders (e.g., yellow jersey contenders or top stars) being pulled from bed deep in the night during prior Tours in the same way as 2026. Discussions focused on the possibility rather than frequent occurrences.awp20-07-2026
- Tadej was the fastest up the hill on his TT bike on the TTT stage 1, so while Remco is the undisputed king of TT, he isn’t facing a slouch in Tadej. And if Tadej is really forced to ride in the big mountains to protect his win, rather than pacing IDT, Remco is toast.mij20-07-2026
- Maybe Pogačar didn't go all out in the sprint bit if he thought he could have had won he'd have gone for it. Remco won by two bike lengths so to cone round that would've taken alot. Pulling for 7 km at that pace does take a lot out of anyone.
Rafionain-Glas20-07-2026 - What I believe is immaterial. Night time testing is part of the testing protocol. Is it fair, should it happen? No, in an ideal world that is but we do not live in an ideal world. There have been ruders in the past with exceptional VO2 that have doped.Andrew20-07-2026
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