Is Jan Christen the new Isaac del Toro at the 2026 Giro? He and Adam Yates on UAE's roles and chances

In recent years, Visma | Lease a Bike and UAE Team Emirates-XRG have consistently been the main rivals in the Grand Tour general classifications. But with the Giro d'Italia 2026 about to begin, all the attention is on the former. How are the cards stacked at the Emirates-based squad, who are still bringing serious quality to the start line? IDL Pro Cycling caught up with rising talent Jan Christen and Adam Yates at the team presentation.

Yates knows all too well how unpredictably things can unfold in Italy. Last year, he and Juan Ayuso began the race as joint team leaders, only for Isaac del Toro to ultimately overshadow both of them. Jay Vine, who at the time was rated on a par with del Toro, faded from contention back in Albania.

For now, the Briton wants to avoid a repeat. "It's going to be a stressful trip through Bulgaria — our main priority is to get through it without any damage," Yates says. "We have a strong team, but we don't have the clear-cut favourite."

"But I actually see that as an advantage — not least because we can assume I'll lose time on certain stages. The time trial is the first one that springs to mind," he adds, keeping his cards close to his chest. Alongside Yates and Vine — who told Cyclingnews he won't be targeting the GC — the team also features Marc Soler, Mikkel Bjerg, António Morgado, Igor Arrieta, the injury-returning Jhonatan Narváez (who impressed greatly at last year's Tour de France) and Jan Christen.

It is those last two riders who particularly stand out — but how are they heading into the race? "I'm doing well," Christen tells us. "After my crash at Milan–Sanremo, I went back to Switzerland to recover as best I could. I was able to get back into training fairly quickly and then headed to an altitude camp, where I rejoined the rest of the team."

Christen's last race was therefore in mid-March, despite a promising start to his season. "When I crashed at Milan–Sanremo, I immediately knew I wouldn't be able to ride the Ardennes Classics. That was painful to accept, because that was originally my target for this spring."

"At first you don't know whether you'll be able to make the Giro either — but fortunately, after two weeks I was already fairly sure it was going to be possible," he continues. "That gave me the motivation to work my way back to top form, which has gone reasonably well," says Christen, who has been able to pick up his training without any major setbacks.

The Swiss rider has long been considered one of the peloton's great young talents, and in the absence of João Almeida he could easily slot into something like an Isaac del Toro role. He himself is measured about that comparison — much as the whole UAE camp seems to be managing expectations going into this Giro d'Italia.

"What's my role? We have a good GC squad here, and I certainly want to help them in the decisive stages. But in some stages I'll also be given the freedom to chase my own chances," he says. Stage 2, a puncheurs' stage, could even present an opportunity to go for the pink jersey from the off. "That stage is definitely in my head — but it's obviously still to be decided what the team's plan will be for that day."

"I'm definitely not going for the GC, but if the team allows it, I'd love to go for some stage wins and also test myself in the real mountains," the 21-year-old Grand Tour debutant continues. "Stage 16 is a special one regardless — it finishes in Switzerland. And it's also really beautiful that in my first Grand Tour I get to race alongside — and against — my brother Fabio, who is also riding the Giro with Pinarello-Q36.5," the proud Swiss rider concludes.