The China Mail - Del Toro, Seixas show glimpse into Tour de France future

After a close contest which begun right from the Grand Depart in Barcelona, Mexican Isaac Del Toro, 22, edged 19-year-old French prodigy Paul Seixas both to third place and the white jersey.

Pogacar may go on dominating the sport for many more years, but at the very least he is likely to face some stiffer opposition as younger rivals mature and progress.

Del Toro -- a close friend and team-mate of Pogacar's -- eventually finished just over two minutes ahead of Seixas but that gap belied how close their arm-wrestle had been, with just 24 seconds separating them at the start of Saturday's Queen stage in the Alps.

"I wanted to go as deep as possible, but there was a moment where I was on my limit, and I cracked," Seixas said of his final effort.

Seixas may feel some disappointment in missing out on the podium, but the magnitude of his achievement cannot be understated.

He was the youngest rider to start a Tour since Adrien Cento in 1937.

Del Toro, by contrast, was riding in his third Grand Tour and last year had come within a whisker of winning the Giro d'Italia.

So to push the Mexican all the way and finish fourth in what is cycling's toughest race -- and on top of that, one made materially harder by 10 days of heatwave -- is a quite astonishing result.

"In a few days, with a bit of air, there will be some pride," said Seixas.

He comfortably beat the likes of Juan Ayuso and Tom Pidcock, who have both finished on the Vuelta a Espana podium in recent years, or even former Grand Tour winners Richard Carapaz and Sepp Kuss.

He may have lacked the panache and impudent brilliance he had shown in the spring in winning the Tour of the Basque Country and Fleche Wallonne, but this race was three times longer than anything he had ever competed in before.

He never came close to winning a stage or even putting in a fortune-changing attack, but he showed admirable durability and determination as other more experienced riders crumbled.

It would be a tall ask to expect him to win a Tour with Pogacar still active, but he certainly appears capable of breaking the home nation's 41-years-and-counting winning drought in the Grande Boucle.

- Del Toro dilemma -

Del Toro finds himself in a unique situation. He was 36th in his debut Grand Tour at the Vuelta two years ago before finishing second at last year's Giro and now third at the Tour.

He is clearly ready to win a Grand Tour right now, but his prospects also depend on his UAE Emirates-XRG team's plans around Pogacar.

If he is required to support Pogacar's ambitions, as he was in France, that would limit is own aspirations.

It's hard to imagine him wanting to limit himself to such a super domestique role next year.

And beyond those two, what of the rest.

Frenchman Lenny Martinez really came into his own at the Tour, finishing fifth at the age of 23.

He is a talented climber who looks capable of fighting for a Grand Tour, although perhaps not the Tour de France.

Seventh-placed Ayuso, also 23, was a teenage sensation before Seixas, finishing third at the Vuelta in 2022.

After some recent struggles, he seems to be battling back to his best.

Briton Oscar Onley, 23, has had a season disrupted by injury and illness but a year ago he finished fourth at the Tour.

Italians Davide Piganzoli, 24, and Giulio Pellizzari, 22, both finished in the Giro's top 10 this year.

But perhaps Italy's most talented youngster is 19-year-old Lorenzo Finn.

He is not quite as advanced in his development as Seixas, but he has been making waves on the junior circuit this year, winning the Giro Next Gen.

Cycling has a bright future ahead of potentially thrilling Grand Tour battles -- but they may all have to wait until Pogacar retires to dream of winning the sport's greatest prize.

A.Kwok--ThChM