At 22, Isaac del Toro finished third overall at the 2026 Tour de France on his first appearance, the breakout rider of the three-week race. He climbed onto the final step of the podium in Paris, still marked by the dust of the road, among the sport's most decorated names. For a debut, it was a rare result.
Third in Paris, first for Mexico
The podium was not settled until the closing days, when illness slowed him and the race threatened to slip away. Del Toro held his ground through the mountains and defended the position against the young French rider Paul Seixas. He carried the gap safely to the finish line in Paris.
The result made him the first Mexican rider to stand on the Tour de France podium. He also won the white jersey as the best young rider, taking that classification by a clear margin. Few debutants have ever left the race with both.
The podium capped a Tour that had opened with a statement of intent. On 5 July he won Stage 2 on the Montjuïc climb in Barcelona, a late move inside the final kilometre that completed a UAE Team Emirates-XRG one-two. It made him only the second Mexican to win a Tour stage, after Raúl Alcalá.
A friend at the front
His teammate Tadej Pogačar won the race for a 5th time, and del Toro credited the Slovenian for his support through the hard days. "Tadej has shown how good a friend he is," he told reporters after the finish. The two had ridden the closing week almost as one.
Three weeks earlier, he was a debutant few outside cycling could name. He leaves Paris third overall and in the white jersey of the best young rider. The sport will now be watching him closely.
