It was held on 17 March over a distance of 298 kilometres (185.2 miles) and was the fourth race of the 2012 UCI World Tour season.

The race was won by GreenEDGE rider Simon Gerrans, who was part of a three-man group that battled for the victory, in a sprint finish.

[1][2] Gerrans finished ahead of RadioShack–Nissan's Fabian Cancellara – the winner of the race in 2008 – and Liquigas–Cannondale's Vincenzo Nibali, who completed the podium.

[3] As Milan–San Remo was a UCI World Tour event, all 18 UCI ProTeams were invited automatically and obligated to send a squad.

Seven other squads were given wildcard places into the race,[4] and as such, formed the event's 25-team peloton.