The peloton gave the seven escapees, including Affini, a five-minute lead, but the leaders were caught on the slopes of the steep Picón Blanco. This was followed by a battle between the men in the group of classification riders, which included Chris Harper for a long time. The Australian of Team Jumbo-Visma could hold on to the Picón Blanco but had to pass on the final climb, about eight kilometres from the finish line.

"We had two goals today: we wanted to keep Chris in front and ensure someone was in the breakaway. With Edoardo, we had someone in the breakaway, so that was good. Unfortunately, the group didn't get much space and Edo was caught early on the Picón Blanco. He was unable to be useful in the valley", sports director Robert Wagner said.

Harper could not make it to the Alto de Bocos, the day's last climb. "Chris didn't have the legs and lost valuable time for the GC today. We had hoped that he would have moved up a few places today, but unfortunately, it didn't work out", Wagner said. "Winning the GC seems out of reach for us, so we're going to set new goals."