Isaac Del Toro broke through the ranks last year, winning the Tour de l'Avenir in an amazing show of climbing talent that net him a contract with UAE Team Emirates for many years alongside the likes of Tadej Pogacar... This year he has won at World Tour level even, but he will race the World Championships with the under-23 riders.
In an interview with Bici.Pro, Matxin confirmed that Del Toro would now race the World Championships in the under-23 category - making him a clear contender for both road race and time-trial, taking into consideration his talent. This is not an unusual situation, and this year the Tour de l'Avenir was won by Israel - Premier Tech rider Joseph Blackmore. As riders become stronger and stronger at a young age we see more top riders race in under-23 events, but there is no rule that prevents the Mexican from racing alongside these riders as he is also currently a 20-year old neo-pro.
Del Toro won at the Tour Down Under in January, won the GC and a stage at the Vuelta Asturias; and recently made his Grand Tour debut at the Vuelta a España. "And in fact no: the Vuelta wasn’t on the agenda for Del Toro, but since he’s one of the stratospheric riders we have, see Ayuso and Pogacar, with these profiles you can speed things up a bit," Matxin said of one of his brightest talents.
"So we chose the Vuelta because it doesn’t change your plans for the year. You’ve done what you had to do... It’s also true that the places for the Vuelta were assigned. But [Marc] Hirschi, who is aiming hard for the world championship at home, had told us that he would have preferred to get to the world championship without doing the Vuelta and so Isaac took his place".
In the end Del Toro, like most of the team, did not have his best race. However this was much due to an illness that completely derailed his chances of fighting for the overall classification and wanted to abandon the race at several points because of it.
"I would say he had a good Vuelta. He rode very well in the first week, which was really complicated, but then he got sick. He had problems with headaches, diarrhea and many bad sensations," Matxin shares. But ultimately it was a positive experience that will give him important experience for the future. "But he decided to suffer. He was sick for two days, but then he couldn't recover. He wasn't in his normal condition. But the good thing is that right at the end, in the last 3-4 stages, he recovered. He was feeling better".
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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