Buemi seals pole for Monaco ePrix

The Swiss driver took his e-dams Renault-entered Spark-Renault around the 1.7kms track to record a best time of 53.478s. It is Buemi’s second pole position of the season, following on from his Buenos Aires top spot in January.

Lining up alongside Buemi on the front row will be points leader Lucas di Grassi in his Abt Sportsline car. The Brazilian was 0.191s behind Buemi after setting his time in the first group of qualifiers. Di Grassi was at the centre of a bitter dispute with Nelson Piquet, who complained that his rival had blocked him during his fastest lap.

The second row will feature Dragon Racing’s Jerome D’Ambrosio and the NEXTEV TCR-entered car of Nelson Piquet Jr.

There was disappointment for Miami winner Nicolas Prost who had topped the first practice session this morning. The Frenchman starts in sixth place after being unable to maximise his qualifying laps.

Loic Duval set the fifth best time in his Dragon Racing car but takes a penalty for changing his battery before the weekend began. Daniel Abt therefore moves up a place to fifth.

Bruno Senna had a tough session after topping practice two earlier today. The Brazilian will start the race in seventh place at the venue where his uncle Ayrton claimed six Grand Prix victories between 1987 and 1993.

There was little incident throughout the first three periods of qualifying. Jean-Eric Vergne was on schedule for potentially the quickest lap in his group but braked too late into the Rascasse right hander. The former Toro Rosso F1 driver will start the race in 12th place.

It was a disastrous session for Andretti as Scott Speed also struggled with the set-up and brakes on his car. The American starts 14^th.

In the final group, Antonio Felix da Costa crashed his Amlin Aguri machine at the exit of Tabac causing a red flag midway through the session. The Portuguese emerged unhurt from a sizeable rear impact after losing the car on the way in to the quick left-hander.

Several cars are under investigation after the qualifying session. These include di Grassi for blocking title rival Nelson Piquet Jr and both of the Virgin Racing cars of Sam Bird and Jaime Alguersuari.

The race is scheduled to begin just after 4pm local time.