Isaac del Toro preparing for crucial 2027 season alongside Pogacar - UAE rider enjoys holiday as Giro speculations continues after route reveal
Cycling
Isaac del Toro is making the most of his final weeks of rest before beginning preparations for a 2027 season that could mark another major step in his career. One of the international peloton’s biggest revelations over the past two years, the Mexican has chosen Italy for a few days of holiday after the racing calendar ended.
The UAE Team Emirates XRG rider has shared images from his stay in Venice and Verona, two of northern Italy’s best-known tourist destinations. In the city of canals, Del Toro enjoyed a nighttime view of the Venetian Lagoon, with historic buildings illuminated and reflected on the water beneath the moonlit sky.
His trip also included a stop in Verona, where he visited one of the city’s most iconic landmarks: Juliet’s House. The courtyard containing the famous balcony from Shakespeare’s play is one of the city’s busiest tourist spots, its walls covered with messages, stickers and mementos left by visitors from around the world.
The Italian getaway offers a contrast to the demands of a season in which the young Mexican talent once again proved he belongs among the world’s elite. After riding his first Tour de France and finishing third overall, Del Toro now faces a period away from the sport before gradually returning to training.
An Italian holiday before a 2027 season of major responsibilities
Rest will be particularly important for a rider who, at just 22, has already taken on considerable responsibility within the Emirati team.
His second place at the 2025 Giro d’Italia, where he wore the maglia rosa for 11 days, and his subsequent third place at the 2026 Tour de France have confirmed his potential as a Grand Tour contender. He has also won the overall titles at the UAE Tour and Tirreno-Adriatico.
The next step will come in 2027, when he is expected to balance his own ambitions with the role of a key lieutenant to Tadej Pogacar. The Slovenian will remain UAE Team Emirates XRG’s undisputed leader at the Tour de France, where he will seek to add to his remarkable palmarès. Del Toro is one of the key riders in a team whose main objective will once again be to win the French race.
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Will Del Toro ride the 2027 Giro?
The question, however, is whether the Mexican will have a second Grand Tour on his calendar. The Giro d’Italia looks like an especially appealing opportunity for him to lead a team, although he could also end up supporting Pogacar at the Vuelta a España. The plan will depend on how the Slovenian’s schedule is arranged and what the team needs.
For now, Del Toro is enjoying Italy from a very different perspective. With no mountain passes, training camps or race numbers, Venice and Verona offer a welcome break before he returns to UAE’s ranks.
Next year could establish him as one of the leading contenders for the general classification, although his first task will once again be helping Pogacar win the Tour.
Javier RampeCycling Journalist
Javier Rampe is a sports analyst with more than 15 years of experience. He holds a degree in Economics from the University of Rome and a Diploma in Business Studies from the University of Cádiz. Despite coming from an academic background not particularly associated with cycling, his passion for both cycling and journalism was instilled in him from an early age. He grew up following Miguel Indurain and José María “El Chava” Jiménez. An admirer of Michael Robinson’s communication style and journalistic approach, he was inspired to pursue a degree in Journalism at the University of Buenos Aires, which he is currently completing.
He has always maintained close ties with the worlds of sport and culture, contributing from a young age to sports blogs and film and music review websites. His work has appeared in media outlets such as Cope, RAI, and Radio Con Vos. He is also the founder of the cycling-focused podcast El Contraanálisis and the football interview channel Días De Fútbol, dedicated to conversations with professional footballers.
In addition to his work at Ciclismoaldia, Javier has interviewed some of the most influential figures in modern cycling, including Alejandro Valverde and Tadej Pogačar, as well as key voices in anti-doping policy such as Alberto Yelmo, David Varillas, and Marcelo Milano. Marcos Maynar, in relation to the ‘Operación Ílex’ case, is also among the personalities he has interviewed. He enjoys conducting in-depth analysis of the cycling ecosystem and has attended major events such as Strade Bianche, the Vuelta a Andalucía, and Itzulia, as well as numerous national cyclo-cross races.
His background in economics, combined with extensive experience in marketing and corporate communications, drives his continuous study of positioning strategies and ensures that he always keeps his focus on crafting compelling and evocative headlines.
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- Podcast sounds great. Two so called experts stating the f*cking obvious.wrsty04-11-2026
- A mindset that reminds me of Tim Declerq. I loved watching that guy just pound away the kilometers, hours at the front, holding an entire breakaway in check on his own. Bjerg seems like a similar guy. Curling, the team sport.RidesHills04-11-2026
- He will be lol, but he can still win on the climbs hahaawp04-11-2026
- I would love to have his inconsistency. How many wins this year? 2 TdF stages, a WC, a Euro championship, San Sebastian, multiple wins early year. Monument podiums. I'd take it. I don't think he has a chance in the TdF, but he is still amazing.mij04-11-2026
- He's not going to win the TdF. Maybe if they make every single stage a TT he could win. But I still believe Tadej would just sharpen his TT skills and win.mij04-11-2026
- You beat me to it. Should he make a full recovery (likely) and go light early in the year. One, two, three. Don't ask me, I don't give a damn. Should he be on a Feel-Like-He's-Fixin'-to-Die High.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- The deciding factor may be the (TBD) number of (any type of) kilometers without Pogacar.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- Unexplained chronic fatigue is an all too common bitch. The hard to find definitive answer may lie buried in gut mechanisms. A mystery of the deep.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- It's weird to say Evenepoel would be making a "serious mistake by adding the 2027 Giro d'Italia to his calendar, warning that such a decision could even be interpreted as a lack of confidence in his ability to win the Tour de France." It may well be a mistake but with so many commentators (of all sorts) continuously claiming almost everything Remco does as being a mistake, almost nobody should care what the pundits and the disparagers should say. His team may not want him to do the Giro, and that matters. But it's possibly or probably up to Remco to decide and it may not have to be decided on until a month or so ahead of the race. Yes , Remco is inconsistent much like the majority of the best riders but he's enjoying a period of not having been recently injured (or sick). Whatever he does he need not be concerned with critics who will second guess any perceived failure no matter what. I suspect he will have enough other races on his schedule so he won't be considering it. But the worst reason to not race it is because of what some will say - humorous that be.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- I'll say clean sweep all grand tourZamorano04-11-2026
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