![\"Del](\"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-2236641583.jpg\")
<\/p>\nIsaac del Toro, the Mexican sensation and UAE teammate, is Slovenian superstar\u2019s most unpredictable rival to Rwanda rainbow repeat.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Pogacar, left, and Del Toro trained together Friday. (Photo: Anne-Christine POUJOULAT \/ AFP)<\/p>\n
Updated September 26, 2025 03:58PM<\/p>\n
Tadej Poga\u010dar<\/a> lines up Sunday as the undisputed five-star favorite to defend his rainbow jersey at the UCI road worlds<\/a>, but his most dangerous rival may be sitting just across the dinner table all year with Isaac del Toro<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Mexican second-year pro has been on fire coming into Rwanda, stacking 11 wins since July and lighting up the back half of 2025.<\/p>\n In a sport where momentum can trump everything, no one is rolling in hotter into Kigali than \u201cEl Torito.\u201d<\/p>\n The \u201cLittle Bull\u201d signaled his intent in Sunday\u2019s time trial by blazing to fifth in his first crack at the elite men\u2019s race, less than five seconds off the podium, and only three seconds slower than Poga\u010dar.<\/p>\n Is Mexico\u2019s \u201cEl Cabrito\u201d the GOAT-killer of these world championships?<\/p>\n Even humble, Del Toro isn\u2019t pumping his own chest before Sunday\u2019s showdown with the boss.<\/p>\n \u201cIt means nothing,\u201d Del Toro said of his TT ride. \u201cI just start to work, assuming I am the worst guy in the peloton and work step by step. Maybe I am not, but I like to play like this, and let the legs speak during the races.\u201d<\/p>\n That humility masks sharp legs and growing confidence, and on Rwanda\u2019s climb-heavy circuit, Del Toro may be the one rider Poga\u010dar truly has to worry about.<\/p>\n Poga\u010dar will be watching Del Toro Poga\u010dar remains the five-star top favorite despite his rare off-day in the time trial, when Evenepoel passed him late and denied him a spot on the podium.<\/p>\n As long as Pog packs anywhere close to the same watts Sunday that he carried in Zurich last year, the only question could be who stands on the podium behind him.<\/p>\n Poga\u010dar downplayed the severity of the course on Thursday, noting that the steep Mount Kigali comes with 100km still to ride, too far for a long solo even for himself. Or is he bluffing?<\/p>\n He pointed out the usual suspects like Evenepoel, but he also recognized that those he races with all season long at UAE will be wheels worth marking.<\/p>\n \u201cRemco has shown in the time trial that he has good legs,\u201d Pogacar said Thursday. \u201cThere are also teammates from UAE who are doing well. And then there\u2019s Pidcock, who made a strong Vuelta.\u201d<\/p>\n That acknowledgment from \u201cPog the King\u201d raises Del Toro to threat-level usurper of the throne.<\/p>\n Unproven over monument distance Despite the hype, the Mexican still carries some major unknowns into Sunday.<\/p>\n Del Toro\u2019s biggest challenge could be the distance of Sunday\u2019s elite men\u2019s road race that could push beyond seven hours of racing.<\/p>\n Del Toro has hardly raced more than 200km, and he\u2019s never won a race that long. His biggest chance came at Donostia San Sebastian Klasikoa in August at 211km, where he cracked late.<\/p>\n He ripped through Italian one-dayers last month \u2014 reeling off four wins in five starts \u2014 but none stretched beyond 200km.<\/p>\n Worlds is a different beast at 268km, with altitude, heat, and humidity adding to the misery.<\/p>\n Only a handful of riders on the start list \u2014 Poga\u010dar, Mohori\u010d, Rogli\u010d and Evenepoel \u2014 have monument wins etched onto their palmar\u00e8s.<\/p>\n It\u2019s in that magical sixth hour-plus of racing where the real suffering starts and the big champions emerge.<\/p>\n That\u2019s what makes Del Toro both unproven and unpredictable in Rwanda. Nobody knows what he can do six hours deep.<\/p>\n Freelancing for the rainbow Another strike against Del Toro on Sunday is team depth.<\/p>\n On Sunday, he lines up with just two teammates on the Mexican team, and neither is expected to survive beyond Mount Kigali with still more than 100km to go.<\/p>\n Del Toro will be freelancing for most of the race.<\/p>\n In contrast, Slovenia packs an armada of confident and determined WorldTour pros all in support of Poga\u010dar. That\u2019s a big wedge for the defending champ.<\/p>\n Del Toro is also still learning the tactical ropes of top-level racing. It\u2019s easy when you have the legs to ride everyone off your wheel, but his late-race collapse at the Giro d\u2019Italia \u2014 when he lost pink to Visma-Lease a Bike\u2019s Simon Yates \u2014 was something that Del Toro will take some lessons from.<\/p>\n Del Toro will have to race conservatively \u2014 something he\u2019s not used to \u2014 and save his matches for the last few laps.<\/p>\n If he does that, he might have a chance in Sunday\u2019s rumble in Rwanda.<\/p>\n Poga\u010dar still the benchmark The brutal nature of Sunday\u2019s course plays to Poga\u010dar\u2019s favor.<\/p>\n The parcours rolls over nine laps on a longer circuit before the mid-race sting at Mount Kigali ahead of seven more laps on the closing circuit that features two climbs to close out the race.<\/p>\n The big question on Sunday is not when but where Poga\u010dar will choose to attack.<\/p>\n \u201cThe longer climb at Mount Kigali should suit me best. The only problem is that it is still far from the finish line,\u201d Poga\u010dar said. \u201cFrom me, they should have put it closer to the finish line.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll see on Sunday if it\u2019s one of the toughest world championships ever. I don\u2019t think the course is that hard,\u201d he said. \u201cYou have two climbs in the circuit, but there is also a lot of descent in it, and you get those kilometers for free.\u201d<\/p>\n And when Poga\u010dar does jump, will anyone dare to go with him? Almost no one has in the past 24 months, and the ones who\u2019ve tried soon regret it.<\/p>\n If Poga\u010dar strikes early, Belgium, Spain, Denmark, or Britain will need to react quickly. Nobody wants Poga\u010dar to get away too soon and too far, like he did in last year\u2019s 100km solo raid.<\/p>\n Del Toro will need to be there to hitch a ride.<\/p>\n What Poga\u010dar won\u2019t want to do is to roll into the final circuits with a reduced group, where someone like Michael Matthews, or even Del Toro, could surprise in a small-sprint finish.<\/p>\n UAE vs. UAE? And then there\u2019s the trade team dynamic. UAE Emirates-XRG sends at least four riders who could realistically be in the medal mix. Along with Del Toro, there\u2019s Juan Ayuso, Jay Vine, and Pavel Sivakov.<\/p>\n It wouldn\u2019t be a shock to see UAE racers dominating in Kigali. The world No. 1 team comes packed with talent, but everyone\u2019s racing for national jerseys on Sunday, not their trade teams.<\/p>\n Loyalties can blur in the race for the rainbow jersey, however. In the past, teammates have crossed their national lines to help out a top star on their trade team win.<\/p>\n On Sunday, it will be interesting to see if Poga\u010dar\u2019s UAE teammates are racing for him or against him. Poga\u010dar and Del Toro are friends and even paced together Friday in a training ride over the world\u2019s loop.<\/p>\n That\u2019s what makes \u201cEl Torito\u201d the most intriguing wild card in Kigali.<\/p>\n Of almost anyone else in the field, he\u2019s the one packing the mojo to take on Pogi. And the past two years racing alongside Poga\u010dar could mean the Mexican might have picked up a thing or two for Sunday.<\/p>\n If Del Toro packs the matches to extend what he can do in five-hour races into Sunday\u2019s seven-hour marathon, he could stun the world.<\/p>\n For Poga\u010dar, his biggest problem could be his frenemy within.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Isaac del Toro, the Mexican sensation and UAE teammate, is Slovenian superstar\u2019s most unpredictable rival to Rwanda rainbow…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":172314,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[49,48,635,54263,82,88388,54266,62509,83236,54267],"class_list":["post-172313","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-cycling","tag-parent_category-road","tag-sports","tag-tag-isaac-del-toro","tag-tag-tadej-pogacar","tag-tag-uae-emirates","tag-tag-uci-road-world-championships","tag-type-article"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=172313"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172313\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/172314"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=172313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=172313"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=172313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n![\"Del](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-2236641399-720x480.jpg\")
Poga\u010dar and Del Toro previewed the world\u2019s course Friday. (Photo: ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
\n![\"Del](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-2228203991-720x480.jpg\")
Del Toro blew up late in the Donostia San Sebastian Klasikoa in August. (Photo: Antonio Baixauli\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
\n![\"Del](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-2237352284-720x480.jpg\")
Del Toro will count with only two teammates from the Mexican selection on Sunday. (Photo: David Ramos\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
\n![\"Pogacar\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-2174698567-720x480.jpg\")
Poga\u010dar could write more pages of history if he defends his Zurich victory Sunday. (Photo: Fabrice COFFRINI \/ AFP)<\/p>\n
\n![\"Del](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-2236569561-720x480.jpg\")
Del Toro lit up the time trial with fifth, just 5 seconds off the podium. (Photo: Dario Belingheri\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n