Clermont crushed Stade Français 51-9 at Marcel Michelin to move into pole position on the Top 14 log.
Napolioni Nalaga, who pulled out of Fiji's Test against France in Marseilles, scored two second-half tries.
Elsewhere, Lyon were denied a first away win of the season when replacement James Hart scored a last-gasp try for Grenoble. Flyhalf Jonathan Wisniewski kicked the connversion to go with nine penalty goals.
Oyonnax followed up last week's win at Racing Métro with a bonus-point victory over La Rochelle while the Parisians bounced back against Bayonne.
In the evening game, Bordeaux-Bègles saw their unbeaten home record go after Pierre Bernard's missed conversion at the death, with Toulouse recording a sixth straight victory and a second in a row on the road.
Earlier in the day, Toulon were well-beaten by Castres, who moved off the foot of the table.
Round 11 results:
Montpellier 10 Brive 25
Castres 22 Toulon 10
Clermont 51 Stade Français 9
Grenoble 34 Lyon 30
Oyonnax 37 La Rochelle 9
Racing Métro 27 Bayonne 10
Bordeaux-Bègles 20 Toulouse 21
Photo: Thierry Zoccol/AFP Photo