The moment came around eight kilometres from the top of the first-category Santa Barbara ascent. As television cameras panned to the very back of the group which contained all of the general classification favourites for this year’s Giro d’Italia, Juan Ayuso appeared on screen. The UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider’s head was dropped, his jersey was unzipped, his body rocking from side to side. That was that. Any dreams that the Spanish rider still had of the pink jersey were disappearing up the mountain ahead of him on the shoulders of his young teammate, Isaac del Toro. Whispers of co-leadership, intra-team rivalry and questions over who UAE should back as their leader were silenced by steep gradients and sharp hairpins.
Ayuso had mentioned before the stage that he was suffering with the lingering impacts of his crashes earlier in the race, hinting that he wasn’t in the form he’d hoped, so perhaps his implosion should not have come as a surprise. Ahead of stage 16, however, there had been continuous discourse throughout the Giro d’Italia so far – fuelled by some questionable tactics from UAE Team Emirates at crucial moments – regarding who should be supported as leader. Del Toro is the young, inexperienced super-talent riding his first ever Giro, while Ayuso is a Tirreno-Adriatico and Itzulia Basque Country winner, who most expected to be the stronger of the pair. The reality is that Del Toro is surprising us all.
“It was a really hard day for everybody, everybody was dropping, even GC leaders. I’m proud of the work of the team to bring me in this position and I didn’t have the best legs of my life but it’s not an excuse,” Del Toro commented after the stage. The Mexican rider eventually finished in 13th place after conceding some time to the likes of Richard Carapaz and Adam Yates. “I did my best with the energy I had and for sure all of this is thanks to the team because they helped me with their experience. I went to the line with all my energy and wanted to make them feel like I am giving one hundred percent to win this jersey. In the next few days, I hope to be better.”
The 21-year-old also commented on his teammate Ayuso’s performance: “In the stage he said he didn't have the best feelings. Before the stage he was also passing through hard times with two crashes. We tried to manage a bit when he had a hard time on the climb, but like everybody he had a bad day.”
After the events of stage 16, Del Toro deserves unequivocally to be supported in full by UAE Team Emirates. In some ways, this is a positive for the young rider: there is no drama or controversy, and no confusion over tactics. He should be looked after, protected and allowed to ride in the way he wishes on his quest to support pink.
“I want to believe I am able to do it. Every time they attack and I have any gram of energy for sure I will try to be there fighting all the way to the line. I am realising and I believe that I can do it,” Del Toro continued in his post-race press conference.
He also admitted, however, that the general classification is extremely finely poised. Only 91 seconds separates the top-four riders with just five stages remaining until the race reaches its conclusion. This has the potential to be one of the most explosive and closest finishes in a Grand Tour for some time – it is almost impossible to predict what will happen next. UAE Team Emirates have gone from having two options to rely on in a volatile situation to solely backing one horse. Ayuso is no longer in GC contention, and everything rests on the rider who is doing this race for the first time in his career. For Isaac del Toro, the pressure is reaching boiling point.
“The whole top four is super dangerous – we are all different riders, everybody has different sides,” he said. “We need to be careful and attentive. I don't have one favourite but for sure the three of them are dangerous.”
So, while the road may have decided on stage 16 that Del Toro is UAE Team Emirates’ chosen one in the 2025 edition of La Corsa Rosa, he now needs to shoulder that responsibility as the mountains come thick and fast in the final week of racing. There may be fewer questions about his role in the team or his relationship with Ayuso, but there is no longer a ‘Plan B’ for UAE, and this is a squad that is used to winning. Small cracks appeared in Del Toro’s armour during the first real mountain test – will they get bigger, or can they be repaired in time?
