Rising to the occasion at the Giro d’Italia
April proved more testing. He was unable to finish the Gran Premio Miguel Induráin and placed 15th at the Itzulia Basque Country, despite taking second and fourth on stages won by his teammate and team leader João Almeida. Then came the Giro d’Italia — and with it, the moment he truly arrived.
He went to the Giro as chief domestique for Juan Ayuso, but midway through the race it was Del Toro himself wearing the maglia rosa and holding his own impressively. When Ayuso was forced to abandon after a series of crashes, Del Toro became the undisputed leader of UAE Team Emirates – XRG. He kept the overall lead until the fateful stage 20, when Simon Yates delivered a shock masterclass.
Tactically, he and Richard Carapaz found themselves outmanoeuvred by Visma and the Briton, who stole the title at the last possible moment. Yet there’s no question that before the race, Del Toro would have gladly signed for second place overall, a spot on the Roman podium, and a stunning mountain-stage win.
A champion reborn in summer
After a two-month break, he returned sharper than ever. He won the Tour of Austria with three stage victories, triumphed at the Clàssica Terres de l’Ebre, graciously allowed Igor Arrieta to take the win at Prueba Villafranca, finished fifth at the Clásica San Sebastián, and won the Circuito de Getxo. He also claimed overall victory at the Vuelta a Burgos.
A pair of underwhelming results followed — 42nd at the Hamburg Classic and 58th at Bretagne Classic — but Italy once again brought him back to life. He added the GP Industria & Artigianato, Giro della Toscana, Coppa Sabatini, and Trofeo Matteotti to his ever-growing list of honours, with only a modest 31st at the Memorial Marco Pantani interrupting his momentum. At the World Championships in Rwanda, he finished fifth in the time trial and seventh in the road race.
In the final stretch of the season, again on Italian roads, Del Toro kept piling up the wins: Giro dell’Emilia, Gran Piemonte, and finally the Giro del Veneto — his 16th and last triumph of 2025. Along the way he also took 36th at the Coppa Agostoni, eighth at Tre Valli Varesine, and an outstanding fifth at Il Lombardia, his best Monument result yet, achieved while working as the key support rider for the world’s top cyclist, Tadej Pogacar.