Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates XRG) and Lidl Trek's new Spanish signing, Juan Ayuso, both sealed their first stage race wins of the season at the weekend, by winning the final climbing stages at UAE Tour (2.UWT) and Volta ao Algarve em Bicicleta (2.Pro).
Del Toro, though he perhaps needs a little more time, is now starting to breathe down the neck of his team leader - world champion and Tour de France champion - Tadej Pogačar given his versatility and his strike rate.
For his part, Ayuso has been long touted as Spanish cycling's next big thing and he is starting to step into that role. His stage and overall win in Portugal on Sunday were the perfect start to his new tenure with his new team, having left UAE Team Emirates XRG in trying circumstances last season.
Advertisement
Interestingly, del Toro broke Pogačar's climbing record on Jebel Hafeet on Saturday, taking the stage victory and the leader's jersey in UAE. And the following day Ayuso took the climbing record on Alto do Malhão that was held by former Spanish Grand Tour winner, Alberto Contador.
Related News
Though Contador's record stood for a decade - and it's perhaps strange it was not broken before now - Pogačar's climbing record on Jebel Hafeet was set much more recently and underlines the sheer quality of del Toro.
Ayuso climbed the 2.7km Alto do Malhão on Sunday in a time of 6:39, breaking Contador’s 6:48 record from 2016. Though Ayuso won the stage, and is definitely the new record-holder, other riders finished in the same time as him and so also broke the old record.
And the rider who perhaps looked strongest on the climb, and did most of the work, Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM Team), deserves much of the credit for the fact the front group went up the climb so much faster than Contador a decade ago.
Over in UAE, del Toro's ascent of the 10.6km climb of Jebel Hafeet was 40 seconds than the previous best, set by Pogačar in 2022, when he won the stage, just second ahead of Adam Yates, his current team mate, but then with Ineos Grenadiers.
Pogačar had already won the Tour de France twice by that stage, though last Saturday del Toro began attacking on the climbing, and went solo, earlier than Pogačar in 2022, when he made an early move before easing back and effectively proving best in the group sprint to the line.
