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'A dreamer stays on the sofa waiting for something to happen, he is a visionary' – Mauro Gianetti beams as superstar Isaac del Toro brings home UAE Tour title
Team Principal and CEO says powerful but still learning Mexican rider 'prefers to ask two or three times to be sure what he's doing, to not make a mistake'
Isaac del Toro celebrating his UAE Tour victory after the final stage on Sunday(Image credit: Getty Images)
UAE Team Emirates-XRG's team principal and CEO, Mauro Gianetti, described Isaac del Toro as a "visionary" after claiming overall victory at the UAE Tour and continuing to reach his massive potential.
Del Toro confirmed his red jersey win by finishing the final stage in Abu Dhabi safely, claiming his first WorldTour stage race victory in the process ahead of Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain Victorious) and Luke Plapp (Jayco-AlUla).
A sea of UAE team staff and guests donning the team's shirts filled the finish area by Breakwater Beach in the UAE's capital city, with Gianetti joining in the big celebrations as Del Toro successfully defended Tadej Pogačar's crown from 2025.
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"Isaac is not a promise anymore, he's a reality. We see the reaction after an incredible Giro d'Italia last year – the last stage, it was what it was, Visma were good, clever, strong, and we made our mistake," Gianetti told Cyclingnews, sitting down to talk after the celebrations.
"But how he's come back after that special moment to win again and again, so he was able to turn a page. Then, he finished the year number three in the world, and he started the season with the same level we saw on the first stage.
"What he did here in the UAE is an amazing performance – he's progressing, he's working, and he's serious."
The 22-year-old Mexican star has stepped straight into the spotlight as one of UAE's big leaders, and after admitting that he has to believe in himself more after scorching up Jebel Hafeet to take control of the race, Gianetti confirmed that what Del Toro possesses in talent, he perhaps lacks in experience. But he's got the best guidance possible around him.
Del Toro launches his race-winning attack on Jebel Hafeet on stage 6 (Image credit: Getty Images)
"He is committed. He has a big heart, and he's very humble. He prefers to ask two or three times to be sure what he's doing, to not make a mistake and to be very concentrated on his job," added Gianetti, before going on to praise how Del Toro made his ambitious goals by making the jump from Mexico to Europe to pursue a career in racing.
"He invests his life in this job. He left Mexico as a 15 to 16-year-old, following – we can say, not a dream – but following a goal that he had in his life. Because the dreamers stay on the sofa waiting for something happen. He is a visionary, and it was his vision to be here now, doing what he's doing. So he's an incredible, great champion."
Despite their similarity in style on the bike and versatility, it's hard to make comparisons between Del Toro and his team's main leader, Pogačar, but one area where Gianetti is happy to relate his two superstars is the inevitability of them reaching their potential.
After hitting the ground running with a WorldTour win at the Tour Down Under back in January 2025, Del Toro has only gone from strength to strength, and at a rate of knots, almost winning the Giro on debut and winning the third most races of any men's rider in 2025.
"We knew the big numbers were there, so it was only going to be a question of time with Isaac, a little bit like Tadej," he said. "Someone else, they will maybe take one year more or one year less, but a champion is a champion, and they come on faster.
"Now also, I think, with the entourage we have in the team, he has very good teammates that have made the difference, but also our staff, our trainer, our nutritionist, the structure that we have created here, we have very good quality, and this has helped him to progress faster."
Even with their former second superstar, Juan Ayuso, departing in the summer and impressing in the Algarve, UAE will have no worries with Del Toro almost certainly representing their future, even past Pogačar.
It's been a week of triumph for Del Toro, one he said, "I will remember this race forever," and as he looks ahead to Strade Bianche and his next races in Italy, it's an ominous prospect that he will be operating alongside Pogačar at the one-day races in Italy and his first Tour de France come July.
James Moultrie is a gold-standard NCTJ journalist who joined Cyclingnews as a News Writer in 2023 after originally contributing as a freelancer for eight months, during which time he also wrote for Eurosport, Rouleur and Cycling Weekly. Prior to joining the team he reported on races such as Paris-Roubaix and the Giro d’Italia Donne for Eurosport and has interviewed some of the sport’s top riders in Chloé Dygert, Lizzie Deignan and Wout van Aert. Outside of cycling, he spends the majority of his time watching other sports – rugby, football, cricket, and American Football to name a few.
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