‘Tadej told me I have to keep working and pushing.’ Spectacular worlds debut of 21-year-old from Baja California confirms his rise as cycling’s heir apparent to Pogačar’s throne.
Del Toro dared to mark Pogačar on Sunday, and survived to make cycling history. (Photo: Dario Belingheri/Getty Images)
Updated September 29, 2025 02:50AM
When Tadej Pogačar detonated the race on Mount Kigali with about 100km to go at the UCI road worlds, only one rider had the legs and nerve to follow — 21-year-old Isaac del Toro.
For 30km, the Mexican prodigy equaled his UAE Emirates-XRG superstar teammate to prove yet again that he’s destined to become the peloton’s next galáctico.
Del Toro couldn’t match Pogačar’s world-best watts with 66km to go, but he dug deep to deliver Mexico’s best result in the elite men’s road worlds with seventh.
“I wanted to try. I didn’t want to regret anything about today, we wanted to be in the race,” Del Toro said. “My teammates gave everything for me, and we wanted to show that we could be up there for the win.”
Despite suffering from stomach problems, Del Toro’s courage and class proved he is among the rare elite of riders able to follow Pogačar’s accelerations and still survive.
“Obviously, today I didn’t have the level for 266 kilometers. I had some stomach problems,” he said. “Especially on the last lap, I had to slow pace to control my rhythm. Despite all this I was really suffering.”
It wasn’t the podium, but Del Toro’s performance in his elite world’s debut on a savage, unforgiving course that only saw 30 finishers served to reinforce his rise as the heir apparent to Pogačar’s throne.
‘Proud of what I achieved’
Del Toro and Pogačar pulled clear on Mount Kigali. (Photo: David Ramos/Getty Images)
The Giro d’Italia runner-up admitted Sunday was by far the hardest one-day race of his career. He’s raced Milan-San Remo twice, but nothing matched Kigali’s 268km and nearly 6,000m of climbing.
“El Torito” came into this worlds as the ultimate outsider. He’s been on fire in the second half of 2025, and rose to the challenge of daring to stay with Pogačar.
After burning matches trying to hold Pogačar’s wheel — Spain’s Juan Ayuso also tried but waved the white flag early — Del Toro refused to buckle when the Slovenian soloed home with 66km to go.
“It was a very tough race, not only because of the course and the altitude, but also because I started feeling stomach discomfort the day before, which affected me for much of the race,” Del Toro said.
At just 21, Del Toro leaves Rwanda with two historic results: fifth in the time trial and seventh in the road race. Both surpass the previous best Mexican showing at worlds, Raúl Alcalá’s 12th in 1989.
That’s also better than Pogačar’s early worlds attempts, which included four starts and two top 20s before busting through with a podium in third in 2023.
“I’m proud of what I achieved, although I know I could have done more in better conditions,” Del Toro said. “But these experiences are also part of growing as a cyclist.”
‘I have nothing to regret’
Del Toro delivered another stunning performance. (Photo: David Ramos/Getty Images)
Sunday’s spectacular showing was another important milestone for the second-year pro sensation from Mexico’s Baja California.
These road worlds were Del Toro’s first major monument-distance test. He’s never won a race longer than 200km, and this race by far was the most brutal of his career.
He’s twice raced Milan-San Remo, longer at around 290km, but the Italian monument is much easier compared to the nearly 6000m of vertical pain the peloton confronted Sunday.
“It’s an incredible level of what the podium is today. I am just really proud to have been ‘in’ the race,” he said. “It’s been a long time since Mexico raced in a worlds like this, and for that we’re really proud.”
Most riders who gamble on following one of Pogačar’s acceleration end up paying dearly for it in full, detonating and vanishing from the results sheet.
Del Toro not only survived, but he also held on for seventh place, and did it with his stomach in knots.
The boss Pogačar — who became the first cyclist to win the Tour de France and rainbow jersey two years in a row — shared some words of encouragement as they embraced at the finish line.
“Tadej told me I have to keep working and pushing, and I congratulated him for what he did today,” Del Toro said. “He won by more than a minute and half, and he’s someone I respect a lot and I admire a lot. I am working to get closer to him step by step, but obviously, it was really complicated to stay with him today.
“In these 10 days I’ve been here in Rwanda, it’s just been incredible. I have nothing to regret.”
At just 21, Del Toro leaves Rwanda with two top-10s in his first elite worlds, and with the sense that of anyone else among today’s younger generation, he’s the rider best placed to one day challenge Pogačar’s supremacy.
Just not yet.