"One of my top three victories of my career" - Isaac del Toro overturns UAE Tour GC with "special" performance on Jebel Hafeet

Isaac del Toro delivered the defining ride of the race on Stage 6 of the UAE Tour 2026, attacking on the slopes of Jebel Hafeet to win solo and take the overall lead from Antonio Tiberi.

The 168km stage from Al Ain to the summit finish had been billed as the decisive day for the general classification, and it delivered exactly that. Del Toro made his move with 2.7 kilometres remaining, distancing Tiberi and riding alone to the line to claim both the stage and the race lead.

Afterwards, the Mexican rider underlined that belief had been central to the performance. “As a team, we wanted to believe that I was convinced I could win today.”

From the outset, the stage was raced at high speed, with repeated breakaway attempts before a strong group formed featuring Enzo Paleni and Cole Kessler, later joined by Stefan Bissegger, Axel Huens, Johan Jacobs, Joshua Tarling, Peter Øxenberg, Mark Stewart and Mattia Gaffuri. Their advantage hovered between one and two minutes as the peloton, led by UAE Team Emirates - XRG and Bahrain Victorious, controlled the gap for their respective leaders.

By six kilometres to go, only five riders remained at the front of the race: Del Toro, Tiberi, Harold Tejada, Felix Gall and Lennert Van Eetvelt. Del Toro launched an initial attack that Tiberi was able to follow, but the final acceleration proved decisive.

“With two and a half kilometres to go, when I attacked, there was still a long way to the finish, and I had to go full gas all the way. When I saw the gap I had, I tried to increase it as much as I could to the line.”

That move ended the contest. Del Toro opened a gap that steadily grew as he powered towards the summit, crossing the line alone to secure what he described as one of the most significant wins of his career. “It’s a mental game in which you have to have confidence to keep trying, and if it doesn’t work once, you have to keep in your head that you’re going to do it. So today it wasn’t that we were certain we were going to win, but we did have the mindset that we were going to go for it.”

The victory marks the 23rd of his career and represents a major statement in one of the early season’s most important WorldTour stage races.

“Today is one of my top three victories of my career. It’s very special. When you win a race with a team like this it’s very special," he explained. "And today is a moment to realise that you always have to work for it and that I have to keep believing in myself day by day.”

On a climb that has often defined the UAE Tour, Del Toro did more than win a stage. He reshaped the race and underlined his status as one of the peloton’s most compelling emerging leaders.