I've learned to be quiet

(GMM) World champion Fernando Alonso says he has learned how to zip his lip whilst chatting with formula one's media.

"The less I say, the fewer problems I get," Spaniard Alonso, 25, told the website abc.es.

Before switching to McLaren from Renault last year, he famously declared that formula one is "no longer a sport" after his controversial qualifying penalty at Monza.

Alonso has also clashed particularly with the Spanish press corps in the past, who he has accused of making it difficult for him to return to his homeland due to their intrusion into his off-circuit life.

"F1 developed very fast in Spain," he explained ahead of the Spanish grand prix next weekend, where organisers are expecting an unprecedented Sunday sell-out with 145,000 spectators.

Alonso said: "In 2003, the first races were not even on television, but now the transmissions go on for hours.

"Before, there was maybe two of three specialised (F1) magazines but now there are fifteen or twenty."