Del Toro Battles Illness to Beat Seixas to Tour Podium: ‘Crying and Speechless’

Third on the podium and the white jersey of best young rider: not a bad reward at all for Isaac Del Toro, riding his first Tour de France.

The Mexican rider had key support on Saturday from the Tour’s strongest rider, with yellow jersey Tadej Pogačar shrugging of the lure of a sixth stage win to instead play super-domestique.

Few if any virtual Tour winners have gone to such lengths, but such is the bond between the UAE Emirates-XRG teammates that Pogačar rode on the front for dozens of kilometers, then hung back with Del Toro as Remco Evenepoel—the rider in second overall—attacked in the finale and gained time.

Pogačar could have won the stage if he targeted it; instead he sacrificed his personal ambition to help the younger rider.

The duo crossed the line in a forward-facing embrace, one arm around each other’s shoulders, goal achieved.

“If you could see through the glasses I was just crying and speechless,” Del Toro said afterwards.

He was elated and also relieved, disclosing on Saturday that the illness which had affected several teammates had actually also blighted him.

“Just incredible as an experience,” he smiled. “Pressure is a privilege and today I really, really feel it. It is not easy, this last week in this Grand Tour. I came in a very good situation but I was struggling.

“It is no secret that the team we had sickness. Trying to avoid that they see you weak, you say that you are okay but it is not like this. My last three days in this grand tour was very painful in a different kind of way, but the guys teach me to be resilient.”

Still just 22 years old, Del Toro ends the race 9:42 off Pogačar and 3:16 behind runner-up Remco Evenepoel. It’s a very strong performance, and one which bodes well for his own bid for the maillot jaune further down the line.

There is, though, another young rider with arguably more talent.

‘I hit my limits and I cracked’

Paul Seixas went into the Tour de France with zero grand tour experience. He is just 19 years of age and became the youngest starter in 89 years when he lined out in Barcelona on July 4.

The Frenchman shrugged off speculation that the race could burn him out and got stuck in day after day. 20 stages and six top five finishes later, he has made a hugely promising debut.

He is three years younger than Del Tour, yet finished just over two minutes behind him.

Considering it was his first-ever race longer than eight days, achieving what he did is remarkable.

“I would say that I felt really good at the start and on the Galibier,” he said of Saturday’s race. “And then at the end I just cracked. That’s it, that’s how it is. It’s part of cycling.

“Of course, I’m disappointed I couldn’t fight more for the podium, but well, fourth, we’ll take it.”

Seixas fighting spirit was shown on the day’s final categorized climb, the Col de Sarenne. He wasn’t feeling as good as he hoped, yet his Decathlon CMA CGM team hammered on the front. He then took over, pushing the pace before fading.

What was he thinking?

“To go as deep as I could, to push even further than what I was capable of,” he said.

“And well, there was a moment when I hit my limits, and I cracked. I tried to be stronger than usual, and in the end, I just blew up.”

Still, he saw the bigger picture and accepted the outcome.

“There you go, that’s what we told ourselves in the team. We had nothing to lose,” he said. “Today, I’m 4th. I was 4th yesterday.

“So we went all out to try to break Del Toro and well, he was just stronger today.”

One more all-out effort in Paris

Next up is the final stage, a race around Paris that was unexpectedly shortened on Saturday.

Pogačar is likely to go for the stage win, having tried last year but being unable to hold Wout van Aert. Evenepoel too has said he is also interested in fighting for victory.

Whatever happens, Del Toro will savor the white jersey, the podium finish and being part of it all.

“It is beautiful,” he said, when asked his thoughts on finishing on the podium decked out in the white jersey.

“Something that comes and the moments are perfect. We were here to fight in the final to try it and I’m super happy to be here with the guys and happy to be able to be at the level that they want me to be.

“Just enjoying now the moments, the suffering is more or less passed. It is the last day. We will go with the flow.”

As for Seixas, he too will take satisfaction from his Tour achievements and his Tour experience.

“For sure in a few days when I look back, it will definitely be a source of pride,” he said.

“After that, missing the podium today, well, it’s obviously a downside. I can’t say more than that.”

Ambitious despite being so young, he too might give it a shot on Sunday when the race takes in three laps of the climb.

French fans should be out in their droves and even if it will take a few more years for him to reach his physiological peak, the devotion of home supporters in Paris will unlock whatever oomph remains.