BMC Racing won their second consecutive Grand Tour team time trial as they pipped Orica-GreenEdge and Tinkoff-Saxo by less than a second.
With several changes of surface, including a sandy section near the start, led to organisers neutralising the general classification on the stage, with the times only counting for the team classification.
LottoNL-Jumbo set the early pace with what looked to be a strong time of 8:18, but it wasn't long until TTT specialists Orica-GreenEdge smashed the time by eight seconds.
Tinkoff-Saxo then edged Orica off the top spot by less than a second but their time in the leader's enclosure wasn't to be a long one as TTT world champions BMC took over by a tenth of a second.
Peter Velits crossed the line first for BMC and will wear the leader's red jersey in tomorrow's tough stage to Carminito del Rey. With a challenging finish, and with no time gaps between any of the riders, Velits will have a huge task on his hands to keep hold of the jersey.
Team Sky and Chris Froome didn't take any risks in their run, knowing the result would not affect the Brit's standing in the general classification, finishing in 9:21.
Several teams took even fewer risks, including Europcar (10:25) and Cannondale-Garmin (9:30), with their targets coming later in the race.
Vuelta a España stage one: Puerto Banus - Marbella (7.4km TTT)
1. BMC Racing, 8:10
2. Tinkoff-Saxo, at 0:01
3. Orica-GreenEdge, st
4. LottoNL-Jumbo, at 0:08
5. Etixx-Quick-Step, at 0:10
6. Trek Factory Racing, at 0:12
7. Caja Rural - Seguros RGA, at 0:18
8. Lotto-Soudal, st
9. Movistar, at 0:24
10. Cofidis, at 0:27
Selected others
13. Astana, at 0:30
20. Team Sky, at 1:11
