Almost immediately after the start in Guilherand-Granges, three riders escaped from the peloton. Due to Team Jumbo-Visma's high pace, the gap never got too big. On the Wall of Carnas, at about 30 kilometres from the finish, a battle between the big names ensued and Primoz Roglic attacked twice.

The Slovenian got several riders along, but kept his legs still shortly after. For Sepp Kuss, this was the moment to attack. Together with Brandon McNulty, Mauri Vansevenant and Clément Champoussin he managed to grab a nice lead.

McNulty then bolted away and steadily built his lead. Although Kuss made an all-or-nothing attempt to close the gap on the final climb, McNulty managed to win. Kuss lost to Vansevenant in the sprint for second place.

"I felt perfect today and was looking forward to race again," said Kuss. "I tried to follow McNulty a few times, but he was just powerful today. Also, between the penultimate and final climb I had to make a big effort bridging the gap to the chasers and that cost me just too much energy. Still, I'm pleased with what I showed on this tough course."