MONACO (AFP) - Nico Rosberg will start from pole position in Sunday's Formula One Monaco Grand Prix after an inquiry by race officials cleared the Mercedes driver of any underhand tactics in qualifying.

The German's performance in Saturday's qualifying triggered an official investigation after he lost control and left the circuit, causing yellow flags to be waved in the final minutes of a tense session.

Rosberg's team-mate Lewis Hamilton, whose lap was wrecked by the flags, was incensed, claiming that he would have taken pole if he had completed his lap at full speed.

Suspicions were raised that Rosberg had "done a Schumacher" - in 2006, Michael Schumacher was stripped of pole after race stewards decided that he had stopped deliberately after running wide at the Rascasse corner in his Ferrari.

But with the inquiry clearing him of any wrongdoing, Rosberg keeps pole from Hamilton with the Red Bulls of Daniel Ricciardo and world champion Sebastian Vettel occupying the second row. Race stewards in Monaco said they could find "no evidence of any offence".