By alley - May 24, 2014, 4:45 AM ET

FR3.5: Nato wins Monaco pole prize-fight

Norman Nato beat championship leader Carlos Sainz Jr. to lead a DAMS sweep of the front row for the Formula Renault 3.5 race supporting the Monaco Grand Prix. The Frenchman, who also led a DAMS 1-2 in free practice, stole top spot in the second group of qualifying from Jazeman Jaafar just before the checkered flag came out.

Nato had been a factor at the front throughout the session, trading places with Jaafar and rookie Oliver Rowland, who eventually had to settle for best of the rest behind the pair with more Monaco experience.

Jaafar appeared to have struck a decisive blow in the battle when he went fastest by four tenths of a second, shortly after Nato had bettered Sainz's time from the first qualifying group. Nato's next lap was 0.1sec adrift of the Malaysian, but he found a fraction more on his following effort to take pole.

By topping the first group, Sainz sealed a front row slot after a session where four drivers were in contention at the top, until

he was subsequently hit with a two-place position penalty

. Marco Sorensen, Sergey Sirotkin and Pierre Gasly all threatened to knock the Spaniard back, but once the second runs were under way the championship leader appeared to have them all under control as he repeatedly bettered his time.

Jaafar and Sorensen – both podium finishers behind Nico Muller in Monaco last year – will share the second row, with Fortec team-mates Rowland and Sirotkin next up to complete the top six.

Originally on Autosport.com