Isaac del Toro has one hand on the coolest trophy in cycling that’s not a piglet or one’s body weight in salmon, Neptune’s trident of Tirreno-Adriatico. Del Toro already took the UAE Tour in February and is poised to win another 2026 WorldTour stage race. The Mexican claimed the stage, his 25th career win, with one day to go.

The GC Situation Overnight

1) Isaac del Toro (Mexico/UAE Emirates) 20:10:40
2) Giulio Pellizzari (Italy/Red Bull) +0:23
3) Matteo Jorgenson (USA/Visma-Lease a Bike) +0:34
4) Primož Roglič (Slovenia/Red Bull) +0:44

Del Toro has been fierce in the early season.

The Course

The queen stage, Saturday’s penultimate day had an HC-rated mountain in its first half and three circuits each with a 3-km, 8.1-percent climb in the second half. Camerino, ascended four times in total, was the final summit finish of Tirreno-Adriatico and the stage was the final GC showdown.

Behold the queen stage. Image by La FlammeRouge

With HC Sassotetto in the early going, it was another fine day for the top two chaps in the KOM competition—Spaniards Diego Sevilla and Joan Bou—to grapple for the green climber’s jersey. But the two Spanish ProTeam riders didn’t get in the day’s breakaway. It was, in fact, Timo Kielich who took Sassotetto’s maximum points.

In the first circuit, the half-dozen breakaways split up. Back in the peloton, 14th-place Richard Carapaz flew the coop on the second time up the Camerino climb and joined the second breakaway group with 44 km to go.

Carapaz decides to try something.

Carapaz and company were swept up with 37 km remaining, leaving two intrepid fugitives out front. Camerino III clawed the duo closer, and the race entered the final lap.

Jorgenson’s Visma wound up the pace on an uphill section, temporarily isolating del Toro. The escape was left intact to cook in the Apennine sun but finally was sopped up with 7 km to race.

Wout van Aert attacked just before the foot of the final Camerino climb. When the road tilted to the sky, Pello Bilbao made a surge, eliciting a counterattack from Ben Healy. Van Aert almost came to a stop. Pellizzari launched but del Toro closed him down. Michael Storer went next, drawing Roglič and del Toro. Pellizzari went again and tracked down Healy just after the red kite.

Van Aert makes a late bid for glory.

Del Toro once more closed down Pellizzari. Jorgenson charged up the hill with del Toro on his wheel and Pellizzari gapped. The man in the blue jersey swung past the American in yellow and took the victory. Runner-up Tobias Halland Johannessen stole fourth place on GC from Roglič.

Sunday’s conclusion on the Adriatic Sea is one for the sprinters

2026 Tirreno-Adriatico, Stage 6
1) Isaac del Toro (Mexico/UAE Emirates) 4:46:50
2) Tobias Halland Johannessen (Norway/Uno-X) +0:03
3) Matteo Jorgenson (USA/Visma-Lease a Bike) s.t.

2026 Tirreno-Adriatico GC
1) Isaac del Toro (Mexico/UAE Emirates) 24:57:20
2) Giulio Pellizzari (Italy/Red Bull) +0:42
3) Matteo Jorgenson (USA/Visma-Lease a Bike) +0:43