The 188.2-kilometre (116.9 mi) race took place in the Spanish province of Almería, from El Ejido to Roquetas de Mar.[3] The first half of the race course featured several climbs, the most prominent of which was the second-category Alto de Celín, which crested less than 50 kilometres (31 mi) into the race. On the other hand, the last 70 kilometres (43 mi) were mostly flat, finishing with a longer circuit around Roquetas de Mar before a shorter finishing circuit at 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) long.[4]
The race's main breakaway consisted of three riders: Xabier Azparren, Gilles De Wilde, and Lukas Pöstlberger. The trio claimed almost all of the intermediate sprint and mountains classifications points on offer throughout the route, with Azparren winning the mountains classification and Pöstlberger winning the intermediate sprint classification. With over 40 kilometres (25 mi) left, De Wilde was the first to be dropped from the lead group, while the remaining duo were caught by the peloton with under 18 kilometres (11 mi) left. There were several crashes in the final few kilometres, but in the final sprint, Alexander Kristoff won by a narrow margin ahead of Nacer Bouhanni and defending champion Giacomo Nizzolo.[5][6]