Del Toro defends the pink jersey of the Giro d'Italia like a champion against a Carapaz who continues to bet on winning

They say the best defense is a good offense and that has been the tactic used by the leader of the race, Isaac del Toro, in stage 17 of the Giro d'Italia after once again overcoming a compromised situation caused by the ambitious Richard Carapaz, who already knows what it's like to win a Giro d'Italia and is determined to add the 2025 edition to his list of achievements.

There is no truce in the fight for the leadership of the Giro d'Italia

After the grueling day we experienced yesterday, with cyclists arriving one by one completely exhausted, the participants of the 2025 Giro d'Italia peloton had to face a new mountainous route that would lead them to the beautiful town of Bormio. A paradise in the heart of the Alps at the foot of two giants like the Gavia and the Stelvio.

A route, on paper, less challenging than the previous day, both in terms of distance to cover, 155 kilometers, and the ascents to face: the passo Tonale, a typical pass, very long but with gentle slopes; the Mortirolo, which, despite the terror its name always arouses, was climbed by the Mono side, its gentlest slope, although in recent months there had been speculation about the intention to climb up the so-called "Recta Contador", an option that ultimately was not ready and suitable for the Giro to face its ramps.

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This left a stage that was very attractive for a typical escape of top-level cyclists, which led to attacks and counterattacks from the start of the stage. In one of these movements, it was the leader Isaac del Toro himself who accelerated strongly to join a mini-peloton that had formed, surprising all his rivals except for the vigilant Richard Carapaz.

Finally, a large group of 37 cyclists was formed, including names like Fortunato, Ulissi, McNulty, Kruijswijk, Kelderman, Bardet, Cattaneo, Vacek, Pello Bilbao, Jan Tratnik, or Daniel Felipe Martínez, to name the most relevant. These cyclists began to open a gap on a terrain still approaching the Tonale. As this climb began, as always in these groups, a first selection was made, caused, as it could not be otherwise, by a Lorenzo Fortunato who is having an excellent Giro d'Italia.

Behind them, an unexpected scenario with a Polti-Visit Malta team taking on the weight of the chase as they had not placed anyone in the escape. With this, the escapees reached the foot of the Mortirolo with just under 4 minutes where the natural selection continued in the escape due to the pace of the stage and the difficulty of the ramps. In the last kilometers, there were several skirmishes that, after the descent towards the Valtellina valley, left a small group formed by Romain Bardet, Afonso Eulalio, Daniel Felipe Martínez, Mathias Vacek, and Wilco Kelderman at the front.

In the group of favorites, INEOS Grenadiers reappeared, setting the pace and eliminating Antonio Tiberi, who was completely out of contention for the general classification. However, Egan Bernal, just like in the previous stage, did not have good legs, so they stopped their push and left the work to UAE Team Emirates-XRG. It was not until the final part of the climb when Pellizzari took the lead to increase the pace, without attacking, just to see how his companions were doing.

A change of pace that made Isaac del Toro, Simon Yates, and Egan Bernal lose a few meters, which immediately caught the attention of Richard Carapaz, who then had Jefferson Cepeda lead the way, and a few hundred meters later launched a strong attack. However, this time he couldn't open the gap like the day before, and gradually the favorites regrouped with the finish line in sight. The race offered us some exciting kilometers of pursuit both on the descent and on the false flat and ramps of the valley until finally, the cyclists of UAE Team Emirates-XRG managed to close the gap and avoid the risk of losing the pink jersey, the first match ball saved by Isaac del Toro.

There was only one last difficulty, near Bormio. Le Motte, a climb classified as third category but demanding with its slightly over 3 kilometers at an average of 8%. The pace remained high in the group, so the escapees were within reach, and it was becoming clear that the stage victory would probably go to one of the general classification contenders.

As they reached the climb, feeling the pressure from the favorites, Romain Bardet tried to desperately seek victory while his companions fell victim to the push of the strongest riders in the race. A group of favorites that was initially led at a high pace by UAE Team Emirates-XRG, where Rafal Majka and Adam Yates emptied themselves for their leader trying to prevent any moves. However, they did not count on Daniel Felipe Martínez, who, when caught, launched a terrifying half-kilometer in favor of Giulio Pellizzari, leaving the group decimated.

In a situation where a showdown between the top contenders was once again on the table, without teammates to rely on, Isaac del Toro, who continues to show tremendous audacity, did not hesitate. The Mexican rider launched a strong attack, to which only Richard Carapaz managed to respond. A quick look back and, after seeing that Adam Yates was not with them, they did not hesitate to throw themselves headlong down towards the finish line in Bormio.

They caught up with one of the best descenders in the peloton, Romain Bardet, who had to suffer to hold onto their wheel. Isaac del Toro continued to push to the limit, and in one of the last corners, he even managed to gain a few meters on his two companions, who could not catch up, allowing him not only to win the stage comfortably but also to claim the 10 bonus seconds added to the 4 seconds earned, undoubtedly a morale boost after the weakness shown in yesterday's stage and reaffirming his role as the leader of the general classification.

Just 15 seconds later, the group with the rest of the favorites crossed the finish line, led by Adam Yates, and we had to wait 1 minute and 10 seconds to see Egan Bernal cross the finish line, who, although he seems to be completely out of contention for the final victory, continues to fight to consolidate his return to the highest level with an honorable position in the final general classification.

Tomorrow, the cyclists will have a break in the midst of this mountain frenzy before facing the final two challenging mountain stages that promise very strong emotions.

Stage 17 Classification

1. Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) 3h58'48''
2. Romain Bardet (Picnic-PostNL) +04''
3. Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost) +04''
4. Simon Yates (Visma-Lease a Bike) +15''
5. Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) +16''
6. Derek Gee (Israel-PremierTech) +16''
7. Damiano Caruso (Bahrain-Victorious) +16''
8. Einer Rubio (Movistar) +16''
9. Max Poole (Picnic-PostNL) +16''
10. Afonso Eulálio (Bahrain-Victorious) +56''

General Classification

1. Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) 65h30'34''
2. Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost) +34''
3. Simon Yates (Visma-Lease a Bike) +51''
4. Derek Gee (Israel-PremierTech) +1'57''
5. Damiano Caruso (Bahrain-Victorious) +3'06''
6. Egan Bernal (INEOS Grenadiers) +4'43''
7. Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) +5'02''
8. Einer Rubio (Movistar) +6'09''
9. Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +7'45''
10. Michael Storer (Tudor) +7'46''