2019 Japan Cup Road Race (HC)
2019 Japan Cup Road Race (HC)
28th edition: Sunday, October 20, 2019
Japan Cup podium history | 2018 edition | 2022 edition (race not run in 2020 & 2021) | Course map & Profile | Start list
Sunday, October 20: Utsunomiya - Utsunomiya, Japan, 14 x 10.3 km laps = 144.2 km
Bauke Mollema wins the 28th edition of the Japan Cup Road Race. Photo Makoto Ayano
The race: Here's the report from third-place Dion Smith's Mitchelton-Scott team.
New Zealander Dion Smith closed off his 2019 season today with an impressive third place finish at Japan Cup after making it into a select front group.
Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo) took the race honours after breaking away with Michael Woods (EF Educaton First) in the closing two laps, with Smith part of a fierce chase behind, fighting all the way to the line to make it onto the podium for Mitchelton-SCOTT.
With a hard parcours race around 14laps of a hilly circuit, young neo-pro Rob Stannard was the first to represent Mitchelton-SCOTT, jumping into a breakaway group with seven other riders.
The group remained ahead lap-after-lap, until the peloton decided their time had come and they were finally swallowed up before fresh attacks came.
With a climb to contest with each lap, the race began to be a wearing down process and a select group of around 20riders were able to get away, before reducing down even further over the heavy terrain as the finish line grew closer.
Mollema and Woods made the race winning move, accelerating away from the small group with around two-laps to go and opened up a small gap that proved to be enough.
Behind, four-riders including Smith went on the chase, clawing their way back to the two leaders but not quite making the junction. Smith continued to battle on and claimed the final place on the podium, a nice reward for the hard work throughout the day in his final race of the season.
Dion Smith:
"I'm pretty happy to pull off a result and being the last race of the season it’s a cool way to cap it off. Lotto-Jumbo had a full team and team with a lot of climbers, they made it really hard four laps to go and from there the main selections were made.
"I wasn’t sure how my legs were going to be but also new I still had some good fitness there from the Vuelta which helped with going deep into the final.
"The team goal was to get on the podium, the plan was to try get someone in the move to open options later in the race and having Rob there was ideal. With only four of us in the team we just had to sit back, ride good position and follow the other world tour teams. F
"James Fouche did a good job helping me and making sure I had everything all day so overall I think we can be happy with the outcome."
Mathew Hayman - Sport Director:
"It was good to have Rob represented out the front, he did a great job there out the front, that breakaway group contained all WorldTour teams and it was a really hard start. After that the race whittled itself down and Dion came to the front.
“He said he wasn’t feeling great with a few laps to go but he obviously was when you see the caliber of those guys he was out the front with. Both those guys won big races last week so I think by doing the Vuelta obviously held him and it was a fantastic way for Dion . It is a great to finish the year, his first year at Mitchelton-SCOTT."
Complete Results:
144.2 kilometers raced at an average speed of 39.111 km/hr
| 1 | Bauke Mollema | Trek-Segafredo | 3hr 41min 13sec |
| 2 | Michael Woods | EF Education First | @ 1sec |
| 3 | Dion Smith | Mitchelton-Scott | 44'' |
| 4 | Francisco Mancebo | Matrix-Powertag | s.t. |
| 5 | Sepp Kuss | Jumbo-Visma | s.t. |
| 6 | Hideto Nakane | Nippo-Vini Fantini | 52'' |
| 7 | Neilson Powless | Jumbo-Visma | 2' 09'' |
| 8 | Robert Gesink | Jumbo-Visma | s.t. |
| 9 | Kenny Molly | Wallonie-Bruxelles | 2' 31'' |
| 10 | Orluis Aular | Matrix-Powertag | s.t. |
| 11 | Steven Kruijswijk | Jumbo-Visma | s.t. |
| 12 | Lucas De Rossi | Delko-Marseille Provence | 2' 35'' |
| 13 | Yukiya Arashira | Bahrain-Merida | 4' 33'' |
| 14 | Nariyuki Masuda | Utsunomiya Blitzen | s.t. |
| 15 | Benjamin Dyball | Sapura Cycling | 4' 37'' |
| 16 | Charles Planet | Novo Nordisk | 4' 51'' |
| 17 | David Lozano | Novo Nordisk | s.t. |
| 18 | Niklas Eg | Trek-Segafredo | 5' 02'' |
| 19 | Giulio Ciccone | Trek-Segafredo | s.t. |
| 20 | Hermann Pernsteiner | Bahrain-Merida | s.t. |
| 21 | Atsushi Oka | Utsunomiya Blitzen | 5' 58'' |
| 22 | Rémy Rochas | Delko-Marseille Provence | 6' 06'' |
| 23 | Alexandre Delettre | Delko-Marseille Provence | 6' 56'' |
| 24 | Sonny Colbrelli | Bahrain-Merida | s.t. |
| 25 | Itsuki Koide | Japan | 9' 43'' |
| 26 | Daiki Magosaki | Bridgestone Cycling | 10' 01'' |
| 27 | Maxx Chance | Wildlife Generation | s.t. |
| 28 | Yusuke Hatanaka | Team Ukyo | s.t. |
| 29 | Daiki Yasuhara | Matrix-Powertag | s.t. |
| 30 | Mathijs Paasschens | Wallonie-Bruxelles | s.t. |
| 31 | José Vicente Toribio | Matrix-Powertag | s.t. |
| 32 | Matic Grošelj | Ljubljana Gusto Santic | s.t. |
| 33 | Phuchong Saiudomsin | Thailand Continental | s.t. |
| 34 | Masakazu Ito | Nippo-Vini Fantini | s.t. |
| 35 | Masahiro Ishigami | Nippo-Vini Fantini | s.t. |
| 36 | Baptiste Planckaert | Wallonie-Bruxelles | 10' 07'' |
| 37 | Manabu Ishibashi | Bridgestone Cycling | 10' 13'' |
| 38 | Sho Hatsuyama | Nippo-Vini Fantini | 10' 29'' |
| 39 | Koen Bouwman | Jumbo-Visma | 10' 50'' |
| 40 | Shotaru Iribe | Shimano Racing Team | 11' 03'' |
Course map
Race profile
Start list with back numbers, October 19, 2010:
| MITCHELTON-SCOTT | |
| 1 | STANNARD Robert |
| 2 | MEYER Cameron |
| 3 | FOUCHE James |
| 4 | SMITH Dion |
| BAHRAIN-MERIDA | |
| 11 | ARASHIRO Yukiya |
| 12 | CARUSO Damiano |
| 13 | COLBRELLI Sonny |
| 14 | NOVAK Domen |
| 15 | PERNSTEINER Hermann |
| 16 | PIBERNIK Luka |
| EF EDUCATION FIRST | |
| 21 | BROWN Nathan |
| 22 | BENNETT Sean |
| 23 | MORTON Lachlan |
| 24 | PHINNEY Taylor |
| 25 | WHELAN James |
| 26 | WOODS Michael |
| JUMBO-VISMA | |
| 31 | BOUWMAN Koen |
| 32 | GESINK Robert |
| 33 | HOFSTEDE Lennard |
| 34 | POWLESS Neilson |
| 35 | KRUIJSWIJK Steven |
| 36 | KUSS Sepp |
| TREK-SEGAFREDO | |
| 41 | BEPPU Fumiyuki |
| 42 | BERNARD Julien |
| 43 | CICCONE Giulio |
| 44 | EG Niklas |
| 45 | MOLLEMA Bauke |
| 46 | THEUNS Edward |
| DELKO-MARSEILLE PROVENCE | |
| 51 | CARR Simon |
| 52 | DE ROSSI Lucas |
| 53 | DELETTRE Alexandre |
| 54 | FILOSI Iuri |
| 55 | JONES Brenton |
| 56 | ROCHAS Rémy |
| NIPPO -VINI FANTINI | |
| 61 | CANOLA Marco |
| 62 | ISHIGAMI Masahiro |
| 63 | HATSUYAMA Sho |
| 64 | NAKANE Hideto |
| 65 | ZACCANTI Filippo |
| 66 | ITO Masakazu |
| NOVO NORDISK | |
| 71 | CLANCY Stephen |
| 72 | HENTTALA Joonas |
| 73 | KAMSTRA Brian |
| 74 | KUSZTOR Peter |
| 75 | LOZANO RIBA David |
| 76 | PLANET Charles |
| WALLONIE-BRUXELLES | |
| 81 | PLANCKAERT Baptiste |
| 82 | MOLLY Kenny |
| 83 | PAQUOT Tom |
| 84 | WIRTGEN Luc |
| 85 | PAASSCHENS Mathijs |
| 86 | WIRTGEN Tom |
| LJUBLJANA GUSTO SANTIC | |
| 91 | HILL Ben |
| 92 | GUY Timothy |
| 93 | KOROSEC Rok |
| 94 | GROSELJ Matic |
| 95 | PENG Yuan Tan |
| 96 | HUANG Wen Chung |
| SAPURA CYCLING | |
| 101 | ZAKARIA Akmal |
| 102 | DYBALL Ben |
| 103 | ABD RASIM Muhammad |
| 104 | OZGUR Batuhan |
| 105 | MISBAH Muhsin |
| 106 | MOHD SHUKRI Muhammad |
| THAILAND CONTINENTAL | |
| 111 | CHAIYASOMBAT Thanakhan |
| 112 | SAI-UDOMSIN Phuchong |
| 113 | SIRIONNACHAI Sarawut |
| 114 | YAOWARAT Ratchanon |
| 115 | CHAWCHIANGKWANG Peerapol |
| WILDLIFE GENERATION | |
| 121 | BOARDMAN Samuel |
| 122 | KIRBY Quinten |
| 123 | CHANCE Maxx |
| 124 | JASTRAB Ryan |
| 126 | ROSS Kent |
| TEAM UKYO | |
| 131 | PRADES Benjamín |
| 132 | HATANAKA Yusuke |
| 133 | UCHIMA Kohei |
| 134 | KOISHI Yuma |
| 135 | YOKOTSUKA Kohei |
| 136 | TAKEYAMA Kosuke |
| MATRIX POWERTAG | |
| 141 | MANCEBO Francisco |
| 142 | TORIBIO Jose |
| 143 | FERNANDEZ Airan |
| 144 | AULAR Orluis |
| 146 | YASUHARA Daiki |
| 147 | KOMORI Ryohei |
| KINAN CYCLING | |
| 151 | NAKAJIMA Yasuharu |
| 152 | OKUBO Jin |
| 153 | YAMAMOTO Genki |
| 154 | AMAGOI Tatsuki |
| 155 | ARAI Yuta |
| UTSUNOMIYA BLITZEN | |
| 161 | MASUDA Nariyuki |
| 162 | SUZUKI Yuzuru |
| 163 | SUZUKI Ryu |
| 164 | HORI Takaaki |
| 165 | ONODERA Rei |
| 166 | OKA Atsushi |
| SHIMANO RACING TEAM | |
| 171 | IRIBE Shotaro |
| 172 | KIMURA Keisuke |
| 173 | MINATO Ryo |
| 174 | YOKOYAMA Kota |
| 175 | KUROEDA Saya |
| 176 | NAKAI Tadaaki |
| TEAM BRIDGESTONE | |
| 181 | MAGOSAKI Daiki |
| 182 | KUROEDA Shiki |
| 183 | ISHIBASHI Manabu |
| 184 | TOKUDA Suguru |
| 185 | HIRATSUKA Yoshimitsu |
| 186 | CHIKATANI Ryo |
| NASU BLASEN | |
| 191 | SHIMOJIMA Masaki |
| 192 | NISHIO Hayato |
| 193 | SHINKAI Ryuji |
| 194 | NISHIO Keito |
| 195 | SHIBATA Masayuki |
| 196 | NAKAMURA Kaito |
| JAPAN | |
| 201 | KOBAYASHI Marino |
| 202 | MATSUDA Shoi |
| 203 | ISHIHARA Yuki |
| 204 | WATANABE Ayumu |
| 205 | ODA Hijiri |
| 206 | KOIDE Itsuki |