Van der Poel and Pogačar beware: Del Toro wasn’t even at his level in Tirreno – but maybe in Sanremo

Del Toro, who had finished third in Strade Bianche on the day Pogacar and Paul Seixas excelled, was actually on point all week in the Tirreno. He finished a respectable tenth in the opening time trial, before grabbing the leader’s jersey with a second-place finish behind Mathieu van der Poel in San Gimignano.

He briefly lost that blue jersey to Giulio Pellizzari on day four, but the Mexican set things straight over the final weekend. In the fifth stage, he gained time on Pellizzari and reclaimed the lead, before putting the icing on the cake in the blue jersey on Saturday with a stage win in Camerino. The final stage to San Benedetto del Tronto was thus merely a matter of finishing safely.

So did everything go smoothly for Del Toro and UAE? Well, after the finish of the final stage, Del Toro admitted in the mixed zone that that wasn’t actually the case at all. “I haven’t had much luck. I was in top form and got sick at the worst possible moment, right before Strade Bianche. However, the team and I had a plan and were determined.”

Although Del Toro didn’t arrive at Tirreno feeling 100%, he still managed to get through the week. “I didn’t want to give up and wanted to give it my all. This overall victory is truly incredible. I did well and can be proud of the level and consistency I’ve shown. Things are moving in the right direction, but there’s still a lot of room for improvement. I wasn’t at the level I wanted to be.”

Those are bold statements, because just how good could Del Toro be if he is truly at 100%? “I’m going to recover now, and then we’ll see,” he said after Milan-Sanremo, where he hopes to help Pogacar secure the victory. The two will have to face off against Mathieu van der Poel, who attacked in the final stage of Tirreno and left the peloton in the dust.

“If he doesn’t do that 90 kilometers from the finish in Milan-Sanremo, everything will be fine,” laughed Del Toro, who briefly went down in the final stretch due to a flat tire, but that didn’t cost him any time in the last 3 kilometers. “I'm super happy with this victory. This is my third time doing Tirreno, and this year I was able to ride more the way I want to, as a leader.”

But what role will he play in Milan-Sanremo, with Pogacar by his side? ‘I’ve already spent a lot of time drafting behind Van der Poel this week, so maybe that will help, haha. I’m riding for Tadej and not focusing on my own result. I want to do a great job as a teammate, and I also enjoy being able to switch roles. That way, I learn everything quickly.’