Mexican cyclist Isaac del Toro claimed his 16th title of the 2025 season on Sunday, winning the 161-kilometer Giro del Veneto with a late breakaway. The victory came just a day after the release of the new world rankings that placed del Toro among the top three cyclists in the world.

The 21-year-old Baja Californian attacked on the final climb, authoritatively breaking away from the pack and riding solo for the final 10.7 kilometers to the finish line. He finished 22 seconds ahead of UAE teammate Pavel Sivakov.

Del Toro has put on some impressive performances this year — including a second-place finish at the Giro d’Italia in June — catapulting himself into third place in the UCI world rankings.

Rising from No. 57 at the beginning of the season, Del Toro now sits behind only UAE teammate Tadej Pogaçar (four-time Tour de France winner) and Team Visma’s Jonas Vingegard (two-time winner in Paris and winner of this year’s Vuelta de España). Only Pogaçar has more victories this season. The powerful Slovenian has 19 wins.

After Sunday’s race, ESPN wrote that Del Toro’s performance “has not only carved his name among the world’s cycling elite, but also makes him one of the leading figures in Latin American cycling.”

His social media mentions are flooded with support from fans across Latin America. Proud Mexican flags, heart emojis and chants of “Viva México!” can be found in every comment thread.

Before the race, Del Toro spoke with ESPN about his rise into the upper echelon of world cyclists in just his second season with the elite UAE Team Emirates, admitting that he never imagined achieving such success so early in his career.

“I would have liked to make it aspirational and reach a top ten; maybe, very boldly, think about a top five, but honestly not a top three,” he said. “It’s something that has surprised me, and obviously, if you do all the small goals in the best way possible, they ultimately add up to a result like this.”

Del Toro said his main objective now is to remain calm and plan for the future without rushing into anything.

“I need to rest my mind a bit, not worry about it,” he said. “I’m very young, and I want to look at where I can improve for next year and prepare my entire schedule ahead of time so I can make the most of it and benefit … for years to come.”

Before he can do that, however, the Ensenada native is preparing for Sunday’s Andorra Cycling Masters, a special exhibition race in which he will compete against Pogaçar, Vingegard and four-time Vuelta de España winner Primož Roglič.

With reports from ESPN, Hola! and La Jornada