{"id":124595,"date":"2026-07-05T18:29:43","date_gmt":"2026-07-05T18:29:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/05\/pogacar-didnt-just-gift-del-toro-a-stage-he-sent-a-message\/"},"modified":"2026-07-05T18:29:43","modified_gmt":"2026-07-05T18:29:43","slug":"pogacar-didnt-just-gift-del-toro-a-stage-he-sent-a-message","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/05\/pogacar-didnt-just-gift-del-toro-a-stage-he-sent-a-message\/","title":{"rendered":"Poga\u010dar Didn&#8217;t Just Gift Del Toro a Stage. He Sent a Message."},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"justify-start\">\n<nav class=\"align-left col-span-full mb-base\" data-pom-e2e-test-id=\"breadcrumbs\"\/>\n<p>Tadej Poga\u010dar&#8217;s gift to Isaac del Toro was more than just a feel-good moment. It sent a warning to every Tour de France rival.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/p>\n<p class=\"fp-leadCaption py-tight text-left font-utility text-utility3-size leading-utility3-line-height text-secondary\">Del Toro and Poga\u010dar embrace at the line in stage 2 at the Tour de France. <!-- --> (Photo: Gruber Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"article-body\">\n<p>Updated July 5, 2026 01:03PM<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><a target=\"_self\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/tag\/tadej-pogacar\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Tadej Poga\u010dar<\/a> could have sprinted victory and possibly into the yellow jersey Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>The explosive stage 2 circuit finale up Montjuic was tailor-made for the afterburners of the four-time <a target=\"_self\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/tag\/tour-de-france\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Tour de France<\/a> champion.<\/p>\n<p>Instead he played kingmaker.<\/p>\n<p>In the frenetic final charge, Poga\u010dar read the wheels \u2014 teammate <a target=\"_self\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/tag\/isaac-del-toro\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Isaac del Toro<\/a> in front and everyone else behind \u2014 and he made sure of the result.<\/p>\n<p>Rather than kicking for a 22nd career stage win, time bonuses and possibly the yellow jersey, Poga\u010dar gave away the biggest prize he could \u2014 Del Toro\u2019s first Tour stage win just two days into the Mexican\u2019s Tour debut.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt means really everything. You cannot believe how much we work to be here. I cannot believe just what I did,\u201d Del Toro said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI also appreciate Tadej, being on the same team for him, how much it means for me and my country.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It was another feel-good moment in the growing friendship between the world No. 1 and the rider whom some believe can inherit his throne.<\/p>\n<p>But are Poga\u010dar and UAE Emirates-XRG so strong and confident that they can already start gifting stages just two days into the 2026 Tour? Maybe.<\/p>\n<h2>\u2018It was Tadej\u2019s decision\u2019<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_991683\" class=\"pom-image-wrap photo-alignnone\"><img alt=\"Poga\u010dar Del Toro stage 2 Tour de France\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1250\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-991683 size-full\" style=\"color:transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/velo-cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Z8C_9157.jpg?width=2048&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=75&amp;fit=cover 1x, https:\/\/velo-cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Z8C_9157.jpg?width=3840&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=75&amp;fit=cover 2x\" src=\"https:\/\/velo-cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Z8C_9157.jpg?width=3840&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=75&amp;fit=cover\"\/><figcaption class=\"pom-caption\"><span class=\"article__caption\">Poga\u010dar and Del Toro celebrate stage 2 at the Tour de France.<\/span> (Photo: Gruber Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Three ascents of Montju\u00efc turned Barcelona into a furnace for the Tour\u2019s first road stage.<\/p>\n<p>Somewhat surprisingly, UAE Emirates-XRG waited until the last lap.<\/p>\n<p>Brandon McNulty detonated the peloton with a savage pull that left only the strongest. Matteo Jorgenson emptied himself trying to defend Jonas Vingegaard\u2019s yellow jersey.<\/p>\n<p>Del Toro covered a late attack and thought he was setting up Poga\u010dar for the win, just as the team scripted before the stage.<\/p>\n<p>Instead of pulling through, Poga\u010dar played cat and mouse with the chasing rivals. Remco Evenepoel came too late for third, and Vingegaard scrapped by in fourth but missed the time bonuses to defend yellow by 6 seconds.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBrandon worked on the final lap and did something special,\u201d said UAE sport director Andrej Hauptman. \u201cIt was Tadej\u2019s decision to let Isaac win like this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rubbing up against cycling\u2019s long held tradition of \u201cno gifts,\u201d Poga\u010dar just gave one away to an entire nation.<\/p>\n<p>Del Toro joins Ra\u00fal Alcal\u00e1 as the only Mexican to ever win a Tour stage.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is the sign of a true champion and shows the character of Tadej,\u201d said UAE sport manager Joxean Matx\u00edn Fern\u00e1ndez. \u201cHe is the world\u2019s biggest star but he wants to help his teammates because they help him.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Mexico\u2019s new national hero<\/h2>\n<p>There was pandemonium at the UAE Emirates-XRG bus.<\/p>\n<p>Rider after rider pushed through the massive crowd, many of them from Mexico cheering on their national hero.<\/p>\n<p>Poga\u010dar \u2014 still decked out in the polka-dot jersey of the best climber \u2014 got a huge cheer from the partisan crowd.<\/p>\n<p>Poga\u010dar wrapped a Mexican flag around his shoulders as he cooled down on the rollers.<\/p>\n<p>The crowd chanted: \u201c<em>Pogi Hermano, eres un Mexicano!<\/em>\u201d \u2014 Brother Pogi, you\u2019re a Mexican!<\/p>\n<p>Poga\u010dar soaked it up with trademark it\u2019s-all-fun-for-me attitude, posed for photos, signed autographs, and celebrated with staffers.<\/p>\n<p>The gesture was authentic. The pair have grown close over the past two seasons, with Del Toro playing the loyal (and super strong) sidekick to King Pog.<\/p>\n<p>Poga\u010dar even joked at the start of this Tour that he\u2019d <a target=\"_self\" class=\"article-content-link text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-racing\/tour-de-france\/tour-de-france-isaac-del-toro-pogacar-surprise\/\" rel=\"noopener\">like to see Del Toro win the yellow jersey<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe he wasn\u2019t joking after all.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><span hidden=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-racing\/tour-de-france\/pogacar-del-tour-stage-victory-tour-de-france-gift\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tadej Poga\u010dar&#8217;s gift to Isaac del Toro was more than just a feel-good moment. It sent a warning to every Tour de France rival. Del Toro and Poga\u010dar embrace at the line in stage 2 at the Tour de France. (Photo: Gruber Images) Updated July 5, 2026 01:03PM Tadej Poga\u010dar could have sprinted victory and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":124596,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/124595"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=124595"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/124595\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/124596"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=124595"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=124595"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=124595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}