‘Just a mental game…you try to be confident enough to keep trying,’ says new race leader Isaac Del Toro
Stage winner Isaac Del Toro (UAE Team Emirates – XRG) attacks during Stage 6 of the UAE Tour on February 21, 2026 in Jebel Hafeet, United Arab Emirates. (Photo: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
Updated February 21, 2026 10:35AM
UAE Team Emirates is in the driving seat to once again take a home victory at the UAE Tour, one year after Tadej Pogačar triumphed overall.
The reason? Resolute self-belief, even amid some admitted uncertainty.
Pogačar is absent this time around but understudy Isaac del Toro stepped up to the plate on Saturday, with he and his team stamping their authority all over the finale.
Del Toro was denied by Antonio Tiberi on the previous summit finish at Jebel Mobrah, but he lit things up on Saturday’s summit finish of Jebel Hafeet with a number of determined surges. While Tiberi stubbornly clung on for a while, there was to be no denying the Merckxian Mexican.
He launched his first attack 4.1km from the finish line. While Tiberi was slightly distanced at first, the Italian fought his way back up to his wheel. However he had no answer when Del Toro launched a scintillating surge 2.7km from the summit, decisively cracking Tiberi.
Del Toro had started the stage 21 seconds back and was under pressure to deliver. He admitted after the stage that overcoming that gap was far from certain, and said that some stubborn self-belief proved vital.
“I was convinced to win today. This is just a mental game that you try to be confident enough to keep trying,” he said.
“Of course if one time it doesn’t work, you need to still have it in the head that you are able to do it.
“Today we were not confident that we will win, but we were with the mentality that we will work for it.”
UAE Emirates XRG did work for it, and did ultimately succeed. Tiberi faded after the pressure of trying to hold onto a rampaging Del Toro, and rolled in fourth, 31 seconds down.
Jayco AlUla rider Luke Plapp—who caught Del Toro and Tiberi with 2.8km to go—was the closest, finishing just 12 seconds back. Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM) was third at 21 seconds.
Evenepoel evaporates
If Saturday was a good day for Del Toro, it was another disappointment for Remco Evenepoel. The Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe rider cracked on stage 3 and said afterwards that fatigue from the previous day’s time trial plus cramps had been responsible.
He was hoping for better on stage 6 but got into difficulty again on the final climb of Jebel Hafeet and slipped out the back with 5km to go.
The Olympic champion ultimately finished 15th, 52 seconds back.
It’s a significant blow to morale following what has been a superb start to the season and the reasons will be dissected in the days and weeks ahead.
It was however a much better day for Del Toro. Like Evenepoel, he is regarded as one of the most promising talents in the sport. He took his 23rd career victory on Saturday and said that it was one of the most significant thus far.
“I think today is one of the top three victories in my career. It is so special. When you win with a team like this, it is even more special,” he stated.
“A lot of people think that we have lot of pressure in the team for the UAE Tour. For sure it’s important to win our home race, but I put more pressure on myself to deliver a good performance than my team does.
“If I win the overall tomorrow, it will be my first WorldTour stage race, it’s very important for me to reach that target. It would make me a different cyclist, so I’ll be even more focused and attentive tomorrow.”
The UAE Tour concludes Sunday with a flat stage to Abu Dhabi. Providing Del Toro seals the deal, it will mark a fourth win in six years by his team.
Given the multi-million euro backing it receives each year from the UAE, that will be a relief.
“Tadej Pogacar told me to enjoy this race, try and win it but never look back, whatever happens,” Del Toro said. “I’m proud of what we did as a team.”