The Rabobank rider sprinted ahead of the pack and finished the 111-mile stage in 4 hours, 26 minutes, 9 seconds. Conditions were cool and rainy along the route from San Pedro del Pinatar to Alhama de Murcia.
Russell Downing of Britain was second and Davide Appollonio of Italy was third, both in the same time.
Contador finished in a second pack, two seconds behind the leader. It was Contador's second race since escaping a doping ban after testing positive for clenbuterol during last year's Tour de France. He finished fourth in Portugal's Tour of Algarve in February.
The Spanish federation's disciplinary committee last month accepted Contador's defense that he unintentionally ingested the banned substance by eating contaminated beef.
"It was a really hard and dangerous day," Contador said. "It looked like it was going to be simple, but it was made very complicated by the rain."
The race on Saturday is a 113-mile mountain stage from Murcia to Sierra Espuna.
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