![\"Juan](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ayuso-dauphine1275939320.jpg@webp.webp\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Ayuso’s level becomes clear<\/p>\n
\u201cHe gave it a go. His form looked decent. We didn\u2019t know how he would arrive,\u201d Larra explained, also recalling the setbacks the rider suffered in the early months of the year. \u201cHe\u2019s another rider who had a rough start to the season. Then he couldn\u2019t perform because of a crash and so on.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even so, he feels the French race helped pinpoint exactly where Ayuso stands before tackling his main goal of the year. The Tour Auvergne-Rh\u00f4ne-Alpes provided a clear benchmark for his current chances against the world\u2019s best.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow we do have a reference point. We know Juan Ayuso\u2019s level today,\u201d he said. That appraisal leads to a demanding conclusion: \u201cWe know he has to improve if he wants to fight for the Tour de France podium.\u201d<\/p>\n
Larra also stressed that team expectations were very high. The Spaniard\u2019s signing was precisely to win races of this calibre and assume leadership at major stage races on the international calendar.<\/p>\n
\u201cLidl Trek signed Ayuso to win this type of race as well,\u201d he stated. That is why he believes failing to take victory in a field without Tadej Pogacar or Jonas Vingegaard amounts to a result below expectations.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Juan Ayuso, Lidl-Trek star<\/p>\n
Criticism of Juan Ayuso\u2019s Dauphin\u00e9<\/p>\n
\u201cNot being able to do it without Vingegaard or Pogacar on the start list is, objectively, falling short of the goal,\u201d he remarked. He stopped short of calling it a total failure, noting the Spaniard still made the final podium.<\/p>\n
The main concern for the journalist is less the result and more the name of the rider who beat him. The rise of Isaac del Toro is once again prompting inevitable comparisons across the international peloton.<\/p>\n
\u201cHaving a guy like Del Toro beat you can be worrying,\u201d he said. \u201cIt can be a little worrying for Lidl Trek and for Juan Ayuso\u2019s ambitions at the next Tour de France.\u201d<\/p>\n
Javier Rampe was far more critical, making his stance on the Spaniard clear from the outset. He believes Ayuso\u2019s main limitation is not talent but adapting to three-week Grand Tours.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m very contrarian when it comes to Juan Ayuso,\u201d he admitted. He then went further: \u201cI don\u2019t think he\u2019s a three-week rider. He\u2019s not a Tour de France rider.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rampe even extended his analysis to the other Grand Tours, questioning whether the Spaniard can realistically contend for victory in three-week races. In his view, the issue has cropped up more than once in recent years.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think he\u2019d be one for the Giro d\u2019Italia either. Three weeks choke him,\u201d he said. He therefore believes Ayuso\u2019s profile fits much better in one-week stage races, where he has already shown a high level.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he should focus on one-week stage races like the ones he wins early in the year,\u201d he added. That assessment contrasts with the expectations currently surrounding the rider in the international bunch.<\/p>\n
Regarding the Tour Auvergne-Rh\u00f4ne-Alpes, Rampe also rejects form as the main explanation for the outcome. In fact, he thinks the situation raises even more doubts looking ahead to the Tour de France.<\/p>\n
Isaac del Toro, a podium at the Tour de France?<\/p>\n
\u201cIf he came in stretched to the limit at the Dauphin\u00e9 [Tour Auvergne-Rh\u00f4ne-Alpes], imagine how he\u2019ll be for the Tour de France,\u201d he said. For him, the Spaniard was one of the big losers of the French race.<\/p>\n
\u201cJuan Ayuso is the big loser. He lost the Dauphin\u00e9 [Tour Auvergne-Rh\u00f4ne-Alpes] to a domestique, which is Isaac del Toro,\u201d he argued. He also did not rule out the Mexican beating him again at next month\u2019s French Grand Tour.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s not rule out UAE putting Isaac del Toro on the Paris podium,\u201d he ventured. It is a possibility that reflects the huge leap the young Mexican has made this season.<\/p>\n
Rampe\u2019s Tour outlook for Ayuso is not especially optimistic either. He believes the Spaniard still has a lot to prove to sit alongside the leading general classification contenders.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has a great deal to prove. I don\u2019t think he\u2019ll perform to be among the top five at the Tour de France,\u201d he said. He also feels the structure around him does not offer the same guarantees as the race\u2019s dominant blocs.<\/p>\n
\u201cLidl is not a solid team for three weeks either,\u201d he concluded. He wrapped up his analysis with a direct comparison that sums up much of the current debate: \u201cIsaac del Toro is coming in with better legs.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Ayuso’s level becomes clear \u201cHe gave it a go. His form looked decent. We didn\u2019t know how…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":642832,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,109610,53652,101,209408,6549,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-642831","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-isaac-del-toro","tag-juan-ayuso","tag-sports","tag-tour-auvergne-rhone-alpes","tag-tour-de-france","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/642831","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=642831"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/642831\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/642832"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=642831"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=642831"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=642831"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}