Track cyclist Aaron Gate (Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy) took out the victory in the 2021 Gravel and Tar Classic, a UCI 1.2-ranked race in New Zealand, over teammate Luke Mudgway in a two-man sprint.
"That was awesome. A great race – the most fun I've had in a road race," said Gate, an Olympic bronze medalist in the team pursuit and former Omnium world champion. "It was really hard on the gravel sections and I was a bit surprised that we ended up with only 10 of us surviving after all the early attacks. It was great to be able to push on for a 1-2 for the Black Spoke team with Luke (Mudgway).
"The good thing is that the form is tracking in the right direction for the Tokyo Olympics which is the major aim. Next for me is to have a really good crack at the national championships next month before heading to Europe, hopefully, for some road racing."
Mudgway, the winner of the Gravel and Tar Classic in 2019, was runner-up last year and second again today with the Vantage New Zealand pair of Ryan Christensen and Finn Fisher-Black two minutes back.
| Pos. | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aaron Gate (NZl) Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy | 4:05:04 |
| 2 | Luke Mudgway (NZl) Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy | |
| 3 | Ryan Christensen (NZl) New Zealand | 0:02:02 |
| 4 | Finn Fisher-Black (NZl) New Zealand | 0:02:49 |
| 5 | Corbin Strong (NZl) New Zealand | 0:03:07 |
| 6 | Ben Oliver (NZl) NZ Cycling Project | 0:03:09 |
| 7 | Hayden McCormick (NZl) Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy | 0:04:12 |
| 8 | George Bennett (NZl) New Zealand | 0:06:44 |
| 9 | Campbell Stewart (NZl) Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy | |
| 10 | Drew Christensen (NZl) New Zealand | 0:08:07 |
| 11 | Glenn Haden (NZl) CouplanD'S Bakeries/BootH'S Group Team | |
| 12 | Josh Burnett (NZl) NZ Cycling Project | 0:08:09 |
| 13 | Tom Sexton (NZl) New Zealand | 0:13:06 |
| 14 | Jack Drage (NZl) Green Monkey | 0:14:12 |
| 15 | Michael Torckler (NZl) Green Monkey | 0:15:12 |
| 16 | George Jackson (NZl) NZ Cycling Project | 0:19:38 |
| 17 | Theo Gilbertson (NZl) NZ Cycling Project | |
| 18 | Ethan Batt (NZl) Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy | |
| OTL | Alexander White (NZl) Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy | |
| OTL | Callum Kennedy (NZl) Green Monkey | |
| OTL | Corby Price (NZl) Green Monkey | |
| OTL | James Krzanich (NZl) Next Gen Racing by Resolve Technology | |
| OTL | Myles Gibson (NZl) Manawatu Region Development Team | |
| OTL | Karl Poole (NZl) NZ Cycling Project | |
| OTL | Caleb Botcher (NZl) Manawatu Region Development Team | |
| OTL | Camden Feint (NZl) Next Gen Racing by Resolve Technology | |
| OTL | Navarh Brotherston (NZl) NZ Cycling Project | |
| OTL | Joel Yates (NZl) Black Spoke Pro Cycling Academy | |
| DNF | Winston Briggs (NZl) Manawatu Region Development Team | |
| DNF | Madi Hartley-Brown (NZl) CouplanD'S Bakeries/BootH'S Group Team | |
| DNF | Jamie Shields (NZl) Next Gen Racing by Resolve Technology | |
| DNF | Oliver Grave (NZl) Next Gen Racing by Resolve Technology | |
| DNF | Ethan Craine (NZl) Manawatu Region Development Team | |
| DNF | Joel Macmillan (NZl) Green Monkey | |
| DNF | David Martin (NZl) CouplanD'S Bakeries/BootH'S Group Team | |
| DNF | Chris Harris (NZl) Kiwi Velo Team | |
| DNF | Adam Francis (NZl) Manawatu Region Development Team | |
| DNF | Nick Kergozou (NZl) CouplanD'S Bakeries/BootH'S Group Team | |
| DNF | Liam Cappel (NZl) CouplanD'S Bakeries/BootH'S Group Team | |
| DNF | David Liu (NZl) Kiwi Velo Team | |
| DNF | Hayden Storrier (NZl) Manawatu Region Development Team | |
| DNF | Marc Langlands (NZl) CouplanD'S Bakeries/BootH'S Group Team | |
| DNF | Regan Gough (NZl) Next Gen Racing by Resolve Technology | |
| DNF | Ewart Bower (NZl) Kiwi Velo Team | |
| DNS | Barnaby Clegg-Shaw (NZl) Green Monkey | |
| DNS | Joshua Courtis (NZl) Next Gen Racing by Resolve Technology |
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