Alonsomania sells out Spanish GP

NUERBURGRING, Germany, May 6 (Reuters) Renault's Formula One world champion Fernando Alonso will be cheered on by his biggest home crowd yet at next week's Spanish Grand Prix, promoters said.

The Circuit de Catalunya said in a statement that tickets were sold out with 130,000 people, a record attendance for the Barcelona track, expected at tomorrow's race and 330,000 over the course of the weekend.

Some 115,900 fans attended last year's Spanish round, before 24-year-old Alonso had become the youngest champion in the sport's history.

The Spanish Grand Prix is also celebrating its 50th anniversary next week, although not all those races were championship events.

With a 15-point lead over Ferrari's Michael Schumacher after four races, Alonso can be sure of leading the championship to Barcelona even if he fails to score in tomorrow's European Grand Prix at the Nuerburgring.

The Barcelona circuit has built a new grandstand and enlarged its capacity by more than 12,000 seats since last year's sell-out attendance.

General admission and grandstand tickets for this year's race were sold out in early February with 1,200 returns from agencies and members snapped up within hours of going on sale last month.

Alonso will also have a plaque erected in his honour at the circuit's Champions' Avenue.

The first and only Spanish driver to win a grand prix, Alonso has yet to secure victory in his home race. Last year he finished second behind McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen. In 2003, he was second behind Schumacher.

''I prefer to finish second or third here and win in Barcelona,'' he told reporters at the Nuerburgring. ''But if I can win here, for sure it will be a big bonus for the people there. I think it will be full anyway and a big weekend for everybody.'' REUTERS PG KP1650