BORMIO, Italy (AP) — Not content with being the first Mexican cyclist to lead the Giro d’Italia, Isaac Del Toro claimed a statement win on one of the race’s trickiest stages to add some precious seconds to his slender advantage.

Del Toro had time to raise his arms over his head and then bow as the youngster crossed the line at the end of the 17th stage four seconds ahead of Romain Bardet and overall rival Richard Carapaz.

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It was Del Toro’s first stage victory in a Grand Tour and might assuage some of his disappointment from the previous day, when he lost nearly two minutes to Carapaz and barely managed to hold onto the leader’s pink jersey.

With the bonus seconds, the 21-year-old Del Toro extended his lead to 41 seconds over Carapaz, who leapfrogged above Simon Yates into second. Yates is 51 seconds behind Del Toro.

It is Del Toro’s second Grand Tour. He finished 36th in the Spanish Vuelta last year.

The 155-kilometer (96-mile) leg from San Michele All’Adige to Bormio featured three climbs, including the Mortirolo, one of the Giro’s toughest and most famous climbs.

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It was there that Carapaz attacked but the Ecuadorian cyclist only had a 12-second advantage at the summit and was caught by his rivals on the descent.

Del Toro made his move about nine kilometers from the finish, on the toughest section of the category three ascent of Le Motte.

Carapaz managed to stick to his wheel but the young Mexican pulled away inside the final two kilometers and kept his small margin on the technical finish.

Thursday’s 18th stage is a 144-kilometer (89-mile) route from Morbegno to Cesano Maderno that features three classified climbs before a relatively flat finale that should end in a bunch sprint.

The Giro ends in Rome on Sunday.

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AP cycling: https://apnews.com/hub/cycling