Race Report: Stage three – Friday, 12 January 2024
With two hands raised above his head as he powered over the finish line, Aaron Gate was all smiles as he won the third stage of the UCI 2.2 Mitre 10 MEGA Masterton New Zealand Cycle Classic, which finished atop Admiral Hill in Wairarapa this afternoon.
Gate won the gruelling 126.9km stage in 3hours 05 mins 26.5 secs while Australian Elliot Schultz (Team BridgeLane) finished second and Ollie Jones (Southern Cross Racing Academy) third.
The victory meant Gate retained the overall leader’s Yellow Jersey and Sprint Ace jersey and is the hot favourite to win the overall tour which concludes in Wellington on Sunday.
Today’s stage began in Masterton and headed southeast through rolling farmland in Gladstone. With temperatures forecast to reach 30degrees, there were concerns about how many riders would race in the heat, with many using icebags to keep themselves cool. As it turned out, cloud cover came over halfway through the race making conditions bearable.
Even though there were several small attacks from the start line, nothing really stuck until after the riders had come down off Te Wharau hill on the first of two steep descents. After the peloton was travelling cohesively along the back straights at around 50km/hour and being driven forward by Japan’s KINAN and Pista Corsa teams, Oliver Grave (Pista Corsa) attacked. He was then followed by Eli Tregidga (RushVelo-Ridley), Eliot Crowther (QFS Cycling Team), Bently Niquet-Olden (CCACHE x Par Küp ), Brendan Rhim (USA) and Campbell Pithie (Couplands Booth’s Group) with the six riders then forming a breakaway that stuck for another 30 kilometres. This lead blew out to 2min 20secs.
After Tregidga dropped off as the lead group went up Te Wharau Hill a second time, the five riders then rode together until around 90km when Pithie mounted a solo attack for the following 20km. This splintered the lead group who were all eventually absorbed back into the peloton.
By 110km, the peloton was back together again and as they turned left up towards Admiral Hill for a gruelling 10km climb, the tension mounted, with riders looking around to see who would make the first move.
At the base of the hill climb and faced with a head wind, it was riders from teams MitoQ Cycling Project and Southern Cross Racing Academy out of their seats driving the group forward. But Team BridgeLane and the New Zealand National Team, including the Yellow Jersey of Gate, quickly responded and assisted in splintering a group of around 10-12 riders who gradually extended their lead over the peloton.
With 5km to go, Matthew Greenwood attacked (Team BridgeLane) but Logan Currie, Gate (NZ National team) and Schultz, along with riders from Southern Cross, kept the pressure on and negated any further attacks. When this group rounded the final corner, Gate manoeuvred himself to the front, then found another gear to power across the finish line and take the stage three victory, with Schultz second and Jones third.
Despite feeling super confident heading into tomorrow’s fourth stage, Gate admitted he was surprised with today’s stage win.
“I wasn’t really expecting it to go that way this morning, but the guys did a pretty awesome job once again in controlling the race for us, especially GJ and Kiaan switching roles from team sprinters to domestiques today and reeling that breakaway back in from the bottom of Admiral Hill,” he said. “There were plenty of attacks on the climb itself and it definitely suited me having that head wind.”
Gate said the last 5km of Admiral Hill can always be deceptive.
“You think you’re nearly there and then you come around the corner and see the 5km to go sign and while there’s a bit of respite, so to speak, when you roll over the steep bit … I just had to bide my time and be patient and wait for the right moment.”
Pithie was rewarded for his solo efforts and presented the Most Aggressive Jersey, while Liam White (CCACHE x PAR KUP) retained his King of the Mountain Jersey. Finnegan Murphy (Southern Cross) emerged as the new U23 leader taking over from William Heffernam (CCACHE x PAR KUP).
“I knew that we were really close, especially on GC for the U23 … we were all on the same time, so it was going to be a sprint to the line, and I knew I had a good kick after a climbing stage like that, so it worked out for me well,” said Murphy.
Murphy, is now turning his attention to tomorrow’s 122km stage 4, being held in the Carterton District.
“Hopefully there is not too much wind. Hopefully I can get a few of the boys to help protect the jersey now … but a day without any wind, would be ideal for me.”
New Zealand Cycle Classic Race Director Jorge Sandoval was thrilled with how today’s stage went and said Gate is the hot the favourite to win the overall tour.
“Aaron Gate came into this event as the favourite and his form over the last few days has been very strong … and he showed it today with that powerful win. Should Aaron take the overall title following the next two stages, then he would become only the fourth person in the tour’s history to win it more than once.”
Sandoval said Brian Fowler won the Tour from 1989 – 1992; Ric Reid won it in 1994 and 1996 and Hayden Roultson won it in 2006 and 2007. Gate previously won the Tour in 2019.
The 2024 Mitre 10 MEGA Masterton NZ Cycle Classic has been made possible through the generous support of sponsors, including Mitre 10 MEGA Masterton, Mobile Communications Service, Wizwireless, Fagan Motors, Gollins Commercial, FMG, The Sign Factory, Tailwind, Cross Country Rentals, and Wellington City Council. Their backing underscores the commitment to fostering and promoting top tier cycling events in the region.
Provisional Results from Stage 3 ofthe UCI 2.2 New Zealand Cycle Classic, supported by Mitre 10 MEGA Masterton:
- Aaron Gate (New Zealand National team), 3hrs 05 mins 26.5 secs
- Elliott Schultz (Team BridgeLane)
- Ollie Jones (Southern Cross Racing Academy)
Classification Jerseys:
- Fagan Motors U23: Finnegan Murphy (Southern Cross)
- FMG King of the Mountain: Liam White (CCACHE x PAR KUP)
- Wiz Wireless Sprint Ace Jersey: Aaron Gate (New Zealand National Team)
- The Mobile Communications Services Most Aggressive Rider: Campbell Pithie (Couplands Booth’s Group)
- Mitre 10 MEGA Masterton Yellow Jersey: Aaron Gate (New Zealand National Team)