Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy's Luke Mudgway has gone straight from the offensive to the defensive after claiming the Yellow Jersey in a sensational ride during stage two of the UCI 2.2 New Zealand Cycle Classic in Masterton today.
Dave Lintott Photography
UCI 2.2 NZ Cycle Classic Stage two winner Luke Mudgway from Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy.
Classification jersey winners following stage 2 of the NZ Cycle Classic: Most Aggressive rider, Toby Atkins, Yellow Jersey Luke Mudgway and U23/Sprint Ace Corbin Strong.
Mudgway won the 158.1km stage in 3hr 39mins 41 secs while New Zealand National team member Corbin Strong crossed the line 17 seconds behind in second place, narrowly pipping Mudgway’s teammate Aaron Gate over the line. It was a dominating performance by Mudgway who earlier in the stage won the two King of the Mountains, and more than enough points to claim the Yellow Jersey.
Minutes after finishing the stage, with temperatures soaring into the high 20s, Mudgway said he was already thinking about defending the Yellow Jersey.
“It was pretty tough. It was quite hot, and I came here pretty opened minded and just stayed and raced at the front all day. There wasn't much wind but just the heat - I quite enjoyed it, the course really suited me today,” he said. “Defend (is what I need to do now). I think I've got a bit of a buffer now. I think I need to get my climbing legs on and get rid of that Christmas pudding over the next couple of days and then try and get up Admiral Hill.”
Today’s stage snaked through rolling, countryside lined with paddocks of sheep, cows and forestry blocks before riders endured a short hilltop climb to finish outside the Masterton Golf Club, home of Sir Bob Charles. The first 20km, the peloton stayed largely together despite a few attempts off the front largely led by Couplands Bakeries Toby Atkins.
Strong, who began the day in the white U23 classification jersey, attacked off the front and won the first sprint but it wasn't until the 68km mark that a breakaway stuck with eight riders taking a 30 second lead. This group included: Mudgway, NZ National team's Ollie Jones, St George Continental's Bailey O'Donnell, Coupland's Nick Kergozou and Atkins, Trust House's Adrian Hegyvary, Wellington City Council's Cathal Guiney and Kiwi Velo's Alex Williams. This group took turns to drive ahead of the peloton at one point having a 3min 40 sec lead.
Mudgway, Atkins and Hegyvary took turns at driving the breakaway forward with Mudgway being rewarded, winning two King of the Mountains. By 115km, the peloton began to close the gap with Black Spoke, the NZ National team, the Cycling NZ team and the NZ Cycling Project team all taking turns in front.
With 10km to go, things began to get interesting. Hegyvary attacked off the front and at one point lead the break away by 30secs, but Mudgway dug deep to reel him in. The pair was followed behind by Jones and O'Donnell with the peloton chasing hard and with about 3km to go Mudgway went for it and held on to the lead up the final small hill climb while his teammates got Aaron Gate in the perfect position to have a battle for second place with Strong, who just beat him over the line.
Strong praised his team’s mates as well as Mudgway’s performance.
“It was quite a nice finish. I like this finish up the wee climb. It was 50:50 if the breakaway was going to come back or not but we were not to stressed as we had Ollie Jones up there it was a big GC directive from our team, so the break end up mostly coming back and it was a bunch gallop for second and the team did an awesome job of Regan (Gough) and Laurence (Pithie) leading us into the bottom of the hill,” he said “I was able to get up for second on this stage and those guys had top 10 finishes which is good, but it was a pretty phenomenal ride by Luke Mudgway to stay away like that and he’s going to be a hard man to beat after today.”
Race director Jorge Sandoval said today’s racing was aggressive and he looks forward to tomorrow’s 127km stage that sees riders head south from Masterton to the pretty wine village of Martinborough.
The 2020 NZ Cycle Classic can take place thanks to the generous support from Trust House, Wellington City Council, Mobile Communications Service, Wizwireless, Fagan Motors, Mitre 10 Mega Masterton, Cross Country Rentals, Tineli and Lion Foundation plus all three Wairarapa District Councils.
UCI 2.2 New Zealand Cycle Classic Stage Two placings.
1. Luke Mudgway, Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy
2. Corbin Strong, NZ National Team,
3. Aaron Gate, Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy
Classification Jerseys
Trust House Yellow Jersey: Luke Mudgway, Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy
Fagan Motors Under 23 Jersey: Corbin Strong, NZ National team
WIZWireless Sprints Classification Jersey: Corbin Strong, NZ National team
Mobile Communication Service Most Aggressive Rider Jersey: Toby Atkins, Couplands Bakeries.
2021 NZ Cycle Classic Stage 2
Date: Thursday, 14th January
Masterton-Alfredton-Masterton
Distance: 121.6 km
Chief Commissaire: Zac Prendergast
Organiser: NZ Cycle Classic
Race Overview
General Classification:
Young Rider Classification:
Points Classification:
Hill Climb Classification:
Stage Aggressor:
Leading Team:
5 Luke MUDGWAY (BSP)
24 Corbin STRONG (NZL)
24 Corbin STRONG (NZL)
5 Luke MUDGWAY (BSP)
125 Toby ATKINS (CBB)
BSP Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy
Stage 2 Result
Time/Gap Bonus
1. 5 Luke MUDGWAY (BSP) NZL 3h39:41 12
2. 24 Corbin STRONG (NZL) NZL +17 9
3. 1 Aaron GATE (BSP) NZL +17 4
4. 21 Finn FISHER-BLACK (NZL) NZL +19
5. 41 Ben OLIVER (NCP) NZL +21 2
6. 22 Laurence PITHIE (NZL) NZL +21
7. 2 James ORAM (BSP) NZL +21
8. 114 Oliver GRAVE (NXG) NZL +21
9. 91 Ryan CHRISTENSEN (BNZ) NZL +21
10. 124 Madi HARTLEY-BROWN (CBB) NZL +21
11. 132 Ewart BOWER (KVT) GBR +21
12. 51 Bradley JONES (FMT) NZL +21
13. 133 Hayden MCCORMICK (KVT) NZL +21
14. 115 James KRZANICH (NXG) NZL +21
15. 65 Jake MARRYATT (WGN) NZL +21
16. 105 Hugo JONES (THT) NZL +21
17. 11 Michael VINK (STG) NZL +26
18. 92 Drew CHRISTENSEN (BNZ) NZL +26
19. 76 Greig MCDONNELL (CAB) NZL +26
20. 15 James HARVEY (STG) NZL +26
21. 46 Josh BURNETT (NCP) NZL +26
22. 53 Ethan CRAINE (FMT) NZL +26
23. 122 Glenn HADEN (CBB) NZL +26
24. 44 Jack DRAGE (NCP) NZL +26
25. 31 Ari SCOTT (FDT) NZL +26
26. 43 Theo GILBERTSON (NCP) NZL +26
27. 52 Karl DRURY (FMT) NZL +30
28. 36 Josh LANE (FDT) NZL +30
29. 82 Myles GIBSON (MMM) GBR +30
30. 54 Sam MEDLICOTT (FMT) NZL +30
31. 3 Campbell STEWART (BSP) NZL +30
32. 72 Corby PRICE (CAB) NZL +35
33. 35 Guy YARRELL (FDT) NZL +35
34. 123 Mark LANGLANDS (CBB) NZL +35
35. 26 Ollie JONES (NZL) NZL +35 3
36. 95 Karl POOLE (BNZ) NZL +35
37. 116 Jamie SHIELDS (NXG) NZL +39
38. 103 Daniel BRIDGWATER (THT) NZL +39
39. 106 James BARNES (THT) RSA +43
40. 71 Benjamin MADSEN (CAB) NZL +48
41. 85 David WEAVER (MMM) NZL +48
42. 55 David LIU (FMT) NZL +54
43. 102 Adrian HEGYVARY (THT) USA +56
44. 33 Samuel RITCHIE (FDT) NZL +59
45. 93 Tom SEXTON (BNZ) NZL +1:01
46. 126 David MARTIN (CBB) NZL +1:01
47. 73 Shaun WOODS (CAB) NZL +1:01
48. 83 Jack POLLEY (MMM) GBR +1:03
49. 136 Campbell PITHIE (KVT) NZL +1:08
50. 94 Max BECKERT (BNZ) NZL +1:08
51. 32 Keegan HORNBLOW (FDT) NZL +1:08
52. 131 Logan CURRIE (KVT) NZL +1:08
53. 4 Joel YATES (BSP) NZL +1:08
54. 61 Callum KENNEDY (WGN) NZL +1:13
55. 14 Hamish KEST (STG) NZL +1:18
56. 25 Regan GOUGH (NZL) NZL +1:18
57. 101 Mark STEWART (THT) GBR +1:18
58. 12 Bailey O’DONNELL (STG) NZL +1:18
59. 84 Alexander RAY (MMM) NZL +1:18
60. 135 Callum NISBET (KVT) GBR +1:22
61. 34 Boston BRIGHT (FDT) NZL +1:32
62. 6 Kiaan WATTS (BSP) NZL +1:50
63. 104 Carne GROUBE (THT) NZL +1:50
64. 23 Reuben THOMPSON (NZL) NZL +1:53
65. 42 George JACKSON (NCP) NZL +1:58
66. 13 Mathew ZENOVICH (STG) NZL +2:21
67. 75 Ben HAMILTON (CAB) NZL +2:41
68. 64 Cathal GUINEY (WGN) NZL +2:51
69. 121 Nicholas KERGOZOU (CBB) NZL +3:23 2
70. 125 Toby ATKINS (CBB) NZL +3:23
71. 113 Hunter GOUGH (NXG) NZL +5:47
72. 81 Blake TAIT-JONES (MMM) NZL +7:02
73. 45 Luke MCDERMOTT (NCP) NZL +8:44
74. 112 Camden FEINT (NXG) NZL +8:44
75. 134 Alex WILLIAMS (KVT) NZL +8:44
76. 111 Joshua COURTIS (NXG) NZL +11:23
77. 63 Liam MORRISON (WGN) NZL +12:01
dnf 62 William FINDLAY (WGN) NZL
dnf 74 Barnaby CLEGG-SHAW (CAB) NZL
Average speed of the winner: 33.2 km/h
Number of starters: 79
Riders abandoning the race: 2
General Classification
After Stage 2
Time/Gap
1. 5 Luke MUDGWAY (BSP) NZL 3h51:09
2. 24 Corbin STRONG (NZL) NZL +15
3. 1 Aaron GATE (BSP) NZL +25
4. 21 Finn FISHER-BLACK (NZL) NZL +26
5. 22 Laurence PITHIE (NZL) NZL +28
6. 2 James ORAM (BSP) NZL +33
7. 26 Ollie JONES (NZL) NZL +39
8. 3 Campbell STEWART (BSP) NZL +47
9. 124 Madi HARTLEY-BROWN (CBB) NZL +57
10. 122 Glenn HADEN (CBB) NZL +1:02
11. 41 Ben OLIVER (NCP) NZL +1:04
12. 133 Hayden MCCORMICK (KVT) NZL +1:11
13. 132 Ewart BOWER (KVT) GBR +1:11
14. 46 Josh BURNETT (NCP) NZL +1:11
15. 44 Jack DRAGE (NCP) NZL +1:11
16. 43 Theo GILBERTSON (NCP) NZL +1:11
17. 105 Hugo JONES (THT) NZL +1:12
18. 11 Michael VINK (STG) NZL +1:16
19. 15 James HARVEY (STG) NZL +1:16
20. 4 Joel YATES (BSP) NZL +1:20
21. 91 Ryan CHRISTENSEN (BNZ) NZL +1:21
22. 25 Regan GOUGH (NZL) NZL +1:25
23. 92 Drew CHRISTENSEN (BNZ) NZL +1:26
24. 31 Ari SCOTT (FDT) NZL +1:28
25. 103 Daniel BRIDGWATER (THT) NZL +1:30
26. 123 Mark LANGLANDS (CBB) NZL +1:35
27. 95 Karl POOLE (BNZ) NZL +1:35
28. 35 Guy YARRELL (FDT) NZL +1:37
29. 76 Greig MCDONNELL (CAB) NZL +1:40
30. 106 James BARNES (THT) RSA +1:43
31. 114 Oliver GRAVE (NXG) NZL +1:44
32. 115 James KRZANICH (NXG) NZL +1:44
33. 36 Josh LANE (FDT) NZL +1:44
34. 102 Adrian HEGYVARY (THT) USA +1:47
35. 65 Jake MARRYATT (WGN) NZL +1:51
36. 72 Corby PRICE (CAB) NZL +1:51
37. 51 Bradley JONES (FMT) NZL +1:57
38. 136 Campbell PITHIE (KVT) NZL +1:58
39. 131 Logan CURRIE (KVT) NZL +1:58
40. 23 Reuben THOMPSON (NZL) NZL +2:00
41. 93 Tom SEXTON (BNZ) NZL +2:01
42. 33 Samuel RITCHIE (FDT) NZL +2:01
43. 71 Benjamin MADSEN (CAB) NZL +2:02
44. 116 Jamie SHIELDS (NXG) NZL +2:02
45. 53 Ethan CRAINE (FMT) NZL +2:04
46. 52 Karl DRURY (FMT) NZL +2:06
47. 54 Sam MEDLICOTT (FMT) NZL +2:06
48. 12 Bailey O’DONNELL (STG) NZL +2:08
49. 126 David MARTIN (CBB) NZL +2:08
50. 101 Mark STEWART (THT) GBR +2:09
51. 14 Hamish KEST (STG) NZL +2:10
52. 32 Keegan HORNBLOW (FDT) NZL +2:10
53. 82 Myles GIBSON (MMM) GBR +2:17
54. 55 David LIU (FMT) NZL +2:30
55. 85 David WEAVER (MMM) NZL +2:35
56. 42 George JACKSON (NCP) NZL +2:43
57. 34 Boston BRIGHT (FDT) NZL +2:54
58. 83 Jack POLLEY (MMM) GBR +2:54
59. 84 Alexander RAY (MMM) NZL +3:05
60. 61 Callum KENNEDY (WGN) NZL +3:06
61. 94 Max BECKERT (BNZ) NZL +3:15
62. 13 Mathew ZENOVICH (STG) NZL +3:17
63. 135 Callum NISBET (KVT) GBR +3:18
64. 104 Carne GROUBE (THT) NZL +3:36
65. 121 Nicholas KERGOZOU (CBB) NZL +3:57
66. 75 Ben HAMILTON (CAB) NZL +3:57
67. 125 Toby ATKINS (CBB) NZL +3:59
68. 64 Cathal GUINEY (WGN) NZL +4:21
69. 73 Shaun WOODS (CAB) NZL +4:28
70. 6 Kiaan WATTS (BSP) NZL +4:49
71. 113 Hunter GOUGH (NXG) NZL +7:10
72. 81 Blake TAIT-JONES (MMM) NZL +8:49
73. 112 Camden FEINT (NXG) NZL +10:07
74. 45 Luke MCDERMOTT (NCP) NZL +11:04
75. 134 Alex WILLIAMS (KVT) NZL +11:10
76. 63 Liam MORRISON (WGN) NZL +13:31
77. 111 Joshua COURTIS (NXG) NZL +13:47
dnf 62 William FINDLAY (WGN) NZL
dnf 74 Barnaby CLEGG-SHAW (CAB) NZL
Wizwireless Points Classification
After Stage 2
1. 24 Corbin STRONG (NZL) NZL 13 pt
2. 5 Luke MUDGWAY (BSP) NZL 12
3. 1 Aaron GATE (BSP) NZL 6
4. 26 Ollie JONES (NZL) NZL 5
5. 41 Ben OLIVER (NCP) NZL 5
6. 21 Finn FISHER-BLACK (NZL) NZL 4
7. 121 Nicholas KERGOZOU (CBB) NZL 3
Intermediate Sprints
Sprint 1: Te Ore Ore Road
1. 24 Corbin STRONG (NZL) 5 pt
2. 41 Ben OLIVER (NCP) 3
3. 5 Luke MUDGWAY (BSP) 1
Sprint 2: Te Ore Ore Road
1. 26 Ollie JONES (NZL) 5 pt
2. 121 Nicholas KERGOZOU (CBB) 3
3. 5 Luke MUDGWAY (BSP) 1
Sprint: Stage Finish
1. 5 Luke MUDGWAY (BSP) 10 pt
2. 24 Corbin STRONG (NZL) 8
3. 1 Aaron GATE (BSP) 6
4. 21 Finn FISHER-BLACK (NZL) 4
5. 41 Ben OLIVER (NCP) 2
Mitre 10 Mega Masterton King of the Mountain Classification
After Stage 2
1. 5 Luke MUDGWAY (BSP) NZL 12 pt
2. 26 Ollie JONES (NZL) NZL 6
3. 12 Bailey O’DONNELL (STG) NZL 6
Hill Climbs
KOM 1: Alfredton Road
1. 5 Luke MUDGWAY (BSP) 6 pt
2. 26 Ollie JONES (NZL) 4
3. 12 Bailey O’DONNELL (STG) 2
KOM 2: Alfredton Road
1. 5 Luke MUDGWAY (BSP) 6 pt
2. 12 Bailey O’DONNELL (STG) 4
3. 26 Ollie JONES (NZL) 2
Fagan Motors Under 23 Rider Classification
After Stage 2
Time/Gap
1. 24 Corbin STRONG (NZL) NZL 3h51:24
2. 21 Finn FISHER-BLACK (NZL) NZL +11
3. 22 Laurence PITHIE (NZL) NZL +13
4. 124 Madi HARTLEY-BROWN (CBB) NZL +42
5. 132 Ewart BOWER (KVT) GBR +56
6. 46 Josh BURNETT (NCP) NZL +56
7. 44 Jack DRAGE (NCP) NZL +56
8. 43 Theo GILBERTSON (NCP) NZL +56
9. 92 Drew CHRISTENSEN (BNZ) NZL +1:11
10. 31 Ari SCOTT (FDT) NZL +1:13
Stage Awards
Mobile Communications Service (MCS) Most Aggressive Rider
125 Toby ATKINS (CBB)
Teams Stage Result
Time/Gap
1. BSP Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy (5, 1, 2) 10h59:41
2. NZL New Zealand National Team (24, 21, 22) +19
3. NCP NZ Cycling Project p/b MitoQ (41, 46, 44) +35
4. FMT Fagan Motors Cycling Team (51, 53, 52) +39
5. NXG Next Gen Racing by Resolve Technology (114, 115, 116) +43
6. BNZ Bike NZ team (91, 92, 95) +44
7. CBB Coupland’s Bakeries/Booth’s Group Team (124, 122, 123) +44
8. FDT Fruzio Development Team (31, 36, 35) +53
9. THT Trust House Team (105, 103, 106) +1:05
10. CAB Cabjaks - Castelli Custom (76, 72, 71) +1:11
11. KVT Kiwi Velo Team (132, 133, 136) +1:12
12. STG St George Continental Cycling Team (11, 15, 14) +1:32
13. MMM Mitre 10 MEGA Masterton (82, 85, 83) +1:43
14. WGN Wellington City Council Team (65, 61, 64) +3:47
Country Rentals Teams General Classification
After Stage 2
Time/Gap
1. BSP Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy 11h34:41
2. NZL New Zealand National Team +4
3. CBB Coupland’s Bakeries/Booth’s Group Team +1:56
4. NCP NZ Cycling Project p/b MitoQ +2:14
5. THT Trust House Team +3:02
6. KVT Kiwi Velo Team +3:06
7. BNZ Bike NZ team +3:08
8. FDT Fruzio Development Team +3:23
9. STG St George Continental Cycling Team +3:26
10. NXG Next Gen Racing by Resolve Technology +4:16
11. CAB Cabjaks - Castelli Custom +4:17
12. FMT Fagan Motors Cycling Team +4:51
13. MMM Mitre 10 MEGA Masterton +6:28
14. WGN Wellington City Council Team +7:41
Stage 3 Convoy
1 BSP Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy
2 NZL New Zealand National Team
3 CBB Coupland’s Bakeries/Booth’s Group Team
4 NCP NZ Cycling Project p/b MitoQ
5 KVT Kiwi Velo Team
6 THT Trust House Team
7 STG St George Continental Cycling Team
8 BNZ Bike NZ team
9 FDT Fruzio Development Team
10 CAB Cabjaks - Castelli Custom
11 NXG Next Gen Racing by Resolve Technology
12 WGN Wellington City Council Team
13 FMT Fagan Motors Cycling Team
14 MMM Mitre 10 MEGA Masterton