“It would be incredible” – Isaac del Toro eyes Paris podium after helping Tadej Pogacar take control of Tour de France
Cycling
Isaac del Toro has set his sights on sharing the Tour de France podium with Tadej Pogacar after safely retaining third place overall on Stage 8.
The 22-year-old Mexican reached Bergerac without incident and remains 3:27 behind his UAE Team Emirates – XRG leader. With Pogacar already 2:42 clear of Jonas Vingegaard, UAE hold a genuine chance of placing two riders on the final podium in Paris.
Del Toro safely through dangerous sprint stage
Stage 8 was decided by a bunch sprint won by Tim Merlier, but the flat and increasingly technical approach presented a different challenge for the general classification contenders. Avoiding crashes, conserving energy and managing another day of intense heat took priority for UAE.
“The truth is that things went well for us today,” Del Toro said after the finish. “The team’s responsibility was to keep us safe and hydrated. We didn’t have any crashes today. Another day safely completed.”
Del Toro crossed the line with his position intact after UAE kept both him and Pogacar away from trouble. He continues to lead the youth classification, seven seconds ahead of Juan Ayuso and 28 ahead of Paul Seixas.
His hold on third place remains narrow. Remco Evenepoel is only three seconds behind, with Ayuso a further four seconds back and Seixas still within half a minute of Del Toro.
Tadej Pogacar, Isaac del Toro and Jonas Vingegaard cross the line together at the 2026 Tour de France
UAE eye two places on Paris podium
Pogacar’s dominant Stage 6 victory in Gavarnie-Gedre established him as the clear race leader, but Del Toro’s performance on the Tourmalet elevated the Mexican into the developing podium battle.
He finished third on the stage after helping set up Pogacar’s long-range attack, then joined Evenepoel, Seixas, Ayuso, Florian Lipowitz and Mattias Skjelmose in the next group behind Vingegaard.
Del Toro has embraced the possibility of combining his work for Pogacar with a personal challenge for a place in the top three. “I think it would be incredible to form a tandem with Tadej Pogacar in pursuit of the podium in Paris,” he admitted.
Pogacar’s yellow jersey remains UAE’s clear priority, while Del Toro continues to operate as one of his most important mountain domestiques. His own position gives the team another tactical option and places pressure on Vingegaard, Evenepoel and the other podium contenders.
After eight stages, UAE lead the Tour through Pogacar, hold third place and the white jersey through Del Toro, and have both riders positioned for a potential double podium in Paris.
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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- lol yeah. this is a good onemij12-11-2026
- Mads is the best: I didn’t even know there were rules in cyclocross. I just thought it was a matter of: ‘Go, three, two, one, ride.’ It’s like a street fight, a kind of underground brawl. It’s the MMA of cycling he gives the best quotes.mij12-11-2026
- he's too young. he's 23, so not really a fair call yet.mij12-11-2026
- and don't forget Pidcock's departure. maybe he will never win a GT, but he knows how to light up a race.mij12-11-2026
- Bingo...I was going to say a 12 year obsessed Pogi fan girlie ! Like she's chasing a teen boy band! All glossy eyed about tadej!frieders312-11-2026
- That stint in the Pink was so good. If memory serves he struggled with the champagne cuz he'd never been on the podium before. I feel like it gave him some self-belief, and yeah - then the move to Visma to be one of their lieutenants has really brought him to the best version of himself.wrsty12-11-2026
- So, you never really compared Paul Seixas with his main rival Isaac Del Toro why jump to Pogačar? They've (Paul & Isaac) raced together here and there, and they've both shared in wins and losses, I think they should be compared to each other, even with Vingegaard and Remco first before even touching Pogačar. From your writing it's like he's better than Vingegaard, Remco and Del Toro already that his main target is now Pogačar 🤔Sadick11-11-2026
- gee i hope its a minor injury. a great rider and ambassador for the sport. get well soon Lucinda.
Davide11-11-2026 - some of lidl-treks retention and recruiting has been puzzling in the mens and womens teams.Davide11-11-2026
- Yeah his ride at World's was unreal. Over 6 W/kg for over an hour and a half...he single handedly destroyed the break.DAS11-11-2026
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