The Italian cycling is not in its best spot historically. With no team in cycling's top division (although Astana and Bahrain have strong ties to Italy), and only Jonathan Milan and Filippo Ganna meeting the absolute standard of quality, the traditional GrandTour powerhouse nation is in a severe of a new face to surpass the legacy of Marco Pantani. And the one can create difference could very well be Lorenzo Finn.
Talent that rivals Paul Seixas
At only 19 years of age, the Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe Rookies rider seems to already be the complete package. Finn's proficiency in the mountains is without a doubt after he had dominated the general classification at both Giro d'Italia Next Gen and Sibiu Tour this year.
But that's not all, because Finn is capable in the Classics-style of racing with world titles from both junior and under-23 categories, can time trial (6th among elites at Italian Championships) and is not afraid of echelons as he put on display during Tour de l'Avenir's opening stage.
Lorenzo Finn in rainbow jersey at under-23 World Championships 2025 in Kigali
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With all that in mind, there's no doubt that Finn is fully ready to make the jump to WorldTour in 2027 as he'll look to catch up to his junior rival Paul Seixas as soon as possible.
Time to step up is here
Before all that, Finn still has a little over a month racing to complete. That would normally include a defense of his rainbow jersey on the hilly circuit in Montreal.
But what use for that is there for the rider who has seemingly already grown out of the under-23 category? That's the question the Italian coaches must've been asking themselves too. Because according to Ciro Scognamiglio, while Finn will indeed travel to Canada, he would represent Italy in the elite category already!
Info @Gazzetta_it - About Lorenzo Mark Finn, now at Tour de l'Avenir and Giro Next Gen winner, sources confirmed us that this year he will do Worlds (road race) and European Champ (road race) not among Under 23 but with the pro' for the first time @cycling_podcast
— Ciro Scognamiglio (@cirogazzetta) August 21, 2026
Furthermore, Finn is part of the plans also for European Championships in Slovenia where he might find a course slightly more to his own liking with even steeper ascents.
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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- It doesnt take a genius to understand that Pogi is 1 level above and Pogi is younger that Jonas, so Jonas will not win under ordinary circumstances. Pogi has to crack hard for Jonas to win. It doesn't matter whether you defend Jonas or not , facts remain facts. Jonas himself says his numbers are better than 2022/2023, so Jonas is more or less optimized and we are just see the stochastic variation due to other factors. I think he will retire along with Pedersen in WC denmarkabstractengineer13-11-2026
- They only raced each other during the 2026 Tour, but here's a few metrics to look at. Stage 3 (Granollers to Les Angles): Pogačar won the stage, finishing 2 seconds ahead of Vingegaard (2nd). Del Toro finished 24 seconds behind Stage 6 (Pau to Gavarnie-Gedre / Col du Tourmalet): Pogačar won solo, Vingegaard finished 2nd (losing 2:38), and Del Toro finished 3rd (at +2:57, finishing 19 seconds behind Vingegaard). Here, Jonas Vingegaard outclimbed Isaac del Toro by 19 seconds on the mountain stageawp13-11-2026
- your clinging to the past. Jonas was dropped by del toro many times last year and jonas never managed a climbing numers del toro did in dauphine last year -entire year. Trend is also evident theres no discussion your living in the past, its beent he same with jonas for many years now and only developing, meanwhile del toro is rising and developing greatly. This is all obvious stuff and im not even a del toro fan. No point discussing numbers or this i suspect you dont watch much now but rather think its 2022 still cause this aint hard.miguel13-11-2026
- We can go through metrics if you like, Del Toro, who I do admire and support, is not on the same level as Jonas just yet. You will see that in early 2027 if they have any crossover races. I do hope they both race the Giro. You are correct though, Jonas is getting older and will not be able to hand on much longer. I see 2027 as a good year for him. Obviously behind Tadej though.awp13-11-2026
- What wins? Are you LA operating under a pseudonym?mij13-11-2026
- My point is this - Tadej, Remco, Seixas are all the outliers. Many riders don’t hit their peak until 28. It’s way too early to write him off. And the pogi slo guy that hates him - he’s also immature. Ayuso needs time.mij13-11-2026
- Then you need to use ur eyes or head if you have cause del toro already dropped jonas two times and beat him in tdf stages already this year.. Del toro climbed(dauphine) better numbers than jonas did all year too. So ur feelings and wishful thinking doesnt amtter del toro himself has already surpassed jonas infact just facts. Its also very evident for anyone objective that Jonas is declining alot, its just the truth and super obvious.miguel13-11-2026
- None of those victories stand, so there's that,wrsty13-11-2026
- No surprise there; it is British Sycling, yes, with an S
Rafionain-Glas12-11-2026 - I like Del Toro but he's not on the level of Jonas, by a large margin.awp12-11-2026
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