Del Toro, Strong As A Lion
Key points:
Just over three months after making his Tour de France debut, where he finished third overall and claimed the White Jersey as Best Young Rider, Isaac Del Toro won the fifth edition of the Tour de France Singapore Criterium. The Mexican champion came out on top in the Lion City in his duel with Paul Seixas, whom he had already battled on the roads of France last July. The two brightest young talents in world cycling went head-to-head over the final two laps of the 60-kilometre city circuit.
Behind the Tour’s top two young riders, two stage winners from the 2026 Tour de France sprinted for third place. Soren Wærenskjold, winner of Stage 11 in Nevers, got the better of Mauro Schmid, who had taken his maiden Tour stage victory two days earlier in Belfort.
Among the day’s intermediate sprint contenders, Biniam Girmay reclaimed the green jersey he had won in 2024, while Baptiste Veistroffer was once again rewarded for his attacking flair. The “Breton Boar” took home the Combativity Award.
DEL TORO AHEAD OF SEIXAS, JUST LIKE IN JULY!
The Singapore crowd got its money’s worth. The luckiest fans even had the chance to spend the morning up close with the riders, sharing the road with Mark Cavendish, Kaden Groves and Mathias Vacek before enjoying a relaxed and friendly meet-and-greet with Jonas Abrahamsen, Biniam Girmay, Paul Seixas and Isaac Del Toro. Under bright sunshine and tropical heat, activities also continued throughout the day in the Festival Village, where riders from Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale took part in a sprint challenge on stationary trainers. Then it was time for racing. The eight professional teams and six local teams first faced off in a short but intense team time trial. UAE Emirates-XRG came out on top, finishing one second ahead of XDS Astana Team and two seconds clear of a remarkable Singapore National Team, which completed the podium. In the main race, the Singaporean riders made their presence felt from the opening lap by placing a rider in the day’s first breakaway alongside, among others, the tireless Baptiste Veistroffer. The Breton rider, voted the most combative rider on three stages of the last Tour de France, was clearly determined to claim the same award in Singapore. A prestigious breakaway then formed with four laps remaining, featuring Mauro Schmid, Soren Wærenskjold, Paul Seixas and Isaac Del Toro. Del Toro launched the decisive attack on the penultimate lap and held off Seixas’s late charge to take victory by a single second. Behind the two brightest young stars in the world peloton, the battle for the final podium spot came down to a sprint between two stage winners from the 2026 Tour de France. Victorious near the Lion of Belfort back in July, Mauro Schmid was unable to roar quite loudly enough in another Lion City. He finished just off the podium, edged out on the line by Soren Wærenskjold. The points classification, decided by four fiercely contested intermediate sprints, went to Biniam Girmay, ahead of Jordi Meeus and Kaden Groves. The team classification was won by Del Toro’s UAE Emirates-XRG squad.
A PARADE OF CHAMPIONS…
The peloton of the Singapore Criterium welcomed not only Tour de France riders today, but also several cyclists who had shone on home roads during the 2026 season. Among the national champions on the start line, Mathias Vacek is no stranger to the role, having already claimed the Czech national title three times (2023, 2025 and 2026): “This is the last time this year that I’ll wear this jersey, and in a way it brings back memories of the Tour de France atmosphere, which remains my favorite moment of the season. Of course, there’s much less pressure here, and we’re just enjoying the end of the year.” For his part, Anders Skaarseth has yet to raise his arms in victory while wearing the Norwegian champion’s jersey, which he won for the first time in his career just before the Grande Boucle. The Uno-X rider did not have high hopes of achieving that today: “I’ll do my best, but with the champions who are here, I might actually have a better chance of winning a stage at next year’s Tour by getting into the right breakaway.” The Chinese national champion’s jersey has never appeared at the Tour de France, but Huayu Su has not given up hope of making it there. The Astana rider, who first caught attention by excelling in the time trial at the Shanghai Criterium in 2019, already knows what it feels like to wear his national colors alongside the world’s elite riders in Singapore: “It’s an honor, and I’ll try to give this jersey some visibility. The ultimate dream would be to earn a place in the Tour, but my 2027 schedule hasn’t been decided yet. If I’m optimistic, I’d give myself a 20% chance.” As for Hector Alvarez, a bright future at the Tour de France appears to lie ahead. Crowned European Under-23 Champion at just 19 years old, the Spaniard subsequently rode his final race in the category, winning Paris-Tours U23, and was exceptionally allowed to wear his star-spangled champion’s jersey in Singapore. “With this jersey, I’ve raced once and I won, but I’m afraid the streak may come to an end here!” And indeed, in his final appearance in the jersey, Alvarez was never in a position to challenge Del Toro.
ISAAC DEL TORO: “ONE DAY PAUL WILL WIN, AND MAYBE THE NEXT DAY IT WILL BE ME”
Before bringing to a close a memorable season, highlighted by his third-place finish at this summer’s Tour de France, Isaac Del Toro chose the Tour de France Singapore Criterium in Singapore for his final race of 2026. And he certainly did not hold back. Speaking just before stepping onto the podium, the Mexican was still struggling to catch his breath. “It was much harder than I expected. With this heat and crazy humidity, I suffered all the way to the finish. Fortunately, I had good legs. But the pace was incredibly fast throughout the day and, combined with the heat, it was really tough.” Pressed all the way to the line by Paul Seixas, who never eased the pressure after Del Toro’s decisive attack, the Mexican had to keep pushing until the very end. “Paul kept coming back. It was really difficult and I just tried to go all-in. Fortunately, it worked.” Asked about his rivalry with the young Frenchman, Del Toro took a philosophical view: “One day Paul will win, and another day maybe it will be me. That’s part of life, so we just have to enjoy these moments.” Vctorious by a small margin over his young rival, Del Toro once again did justice to the white jersey he won in July. “It’s really nice to wear it again. It still feels like a dream, and I’m really happy and excited to wear it and show it on another continent. It’s really cool.” Now, it’s time for some well-earned rest before turning his attention to future objectives: “Honestly, right now I just want to sleep. I’m so tired.”
