Three prototypes and a win in odd shoes – Isaac del Toro has been experimenting for months as Sidi looks set to join the lace-up trend

It seems that Isaac del Toro has been racing in a new unreleased Sidi cycling shoe for several months.

The shoes in question are a lace-up road model that we don’t recognise; Del Toro has been racing in them since at least last year.

Whilst Sidi offers several lace-up options, it doesn’t officially sell a lace-up pro-level road shoe.

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Del Toro and Sidi announced a partnership in March last year, and it seems likely that both parties have been collaborating on a new product.

Once we started going back over various race images, it seems Del Toro has ridden in various shoes with three different lacing systems over the past several months, and even raced and won at Tirreno Adriatico with odd shoes on.

Italian brand Sidi is a famous name in the cycling world, with a great many riders using the brand's products over the years. Brand founder Dino Signori passed away aged 90 in March this year.

Not all pro cyclists have exclusive cycling shoe deals; generally it seems to be something reserved for the sport's bigger stars.

One such example of a pro shoe deal is Remco Evenepoel’s S-Works Torch Remco model, which arrived around this time last year ahead of the Tour de France and was said to have come at Evenepoel's specific request for a lightweight climbing shoe.

The Tour de France isn't far away, and as the pinnacle of the cycling year, it's always a prime time for brands to release new equipment. We recently spotted several new bikes at the renamed Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes this year, which Del Toro himself is competing in.

Cyclingnews has reached out to Sidi for more information on the shoes.

What shoes is Del Toro wearing?

Del Toro raced in Nimbl shoes until he switched to Sidi last year, and for the most part we have seen him racing in the brand's Shot 3 shoes, which feature a two-dial closure system and a carbon sole or ‘chassis’, in the brand's words, which extends up around the heel, making them quite easy to spot.

In a lot of races Del Toro has ridden this year, he has regularly used a lace-up Sidi model that appears to have a very similar sole to the Shot 3; could this be a lace-up version of the same model?

Lace-up shoes are generally considered to offer an aerodynamic advantage over a shoe with closure dials, which sit more prominently on the face of the shoe. The likes of Tadej Pogačar, Remco Evenepoel and Jonas Vingegaard all race in lace-up shoes from DMT, Specialized and Nimbl. Riders also use dedicated dial covers over the middle of their shoes now to smooth airflow.

As far back as late 2025, Del Toro could be seen using a lace-up model with five eyelets on either side of the shoe's quite tall tongue, as well as a black lace toggle or holder.

Whilst the shoes carried Sidi logos, the system looked a little more prototype than a full production version, with a black toggle at the top of the foot being used to cinch the thin-looking lace down. It's a similar-looking system to the Rapha Pro Team Lace-up shoe.

Later versions of the shoes that have been used this year have seven eyelets and a white toggle. Suggesting different variants of the shoe have been tried and tested.

After doing some digging, we also noticed Del Toro lined up for Stage 6 of Tirreno Adriatico with odd shoes on.

The Mexican star wore a Shot 3 on his left foot, and one of the unknown shoes on his right, actually crossing the line to claim victory that day wearing the odd shoes. Perhaps he was carrying out something of a head-to-head comparison between the two models.

Jasper Philipsen also won Nokere Koerse in March wearing odd shoes; his shoe change came mid-race, however, after crash damage forced him to change into an unreleased Shimano model.

Del Toro is racing at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (previously the Dauphiné) this month and is riding in what seems to be a third and far more polished version of the shoes.

The eyelet layout appears to have changed again, with fewer being used, and what looks like a front lace and/or toggle cover flap or patch is in place at the front of the shoe.

This looks far neater than some of the previous shoes, particularly the pair with a black toggle from back last year. This pair look closer to a finished article, and we will keep an eye out for them at the Tour de France next month.

The shoes now look a lot cleaner, and whilst we don't have any information or a launch date yet, you can't say they haven't been tested in competition.