British sports minister questions viability of continuing to hold grands prix in Barcelona.

The Spanish supporters who racially abused Lewis Hamilton during testing in Barcelona at the weekend have been branded 'sickening' and 'idiots' as the future of Formula 1 in the country has come suddenly under threat.

Hamilton - the first black driver in the sport's history - was taunted by fans attending the three-day test, and jeered and insulted when he moved between the McLaren-Mercedes motorhome in the paddock and the Circuit de Catalunya. At the command of circuit director Ramon Pradera, barriers were erected around the McLaren facilities to protect the 23-year-old's safety, banners around the track referring to both Hamilton and team boss Ron Dennis removed and the stands directly above the McLaren-Mercedes garage cleared to ensure no debris could be thrown down when the car returned to the pit-lane.

"The truth is I feel somewhat sad," the Briton is quoted as having said by the BBC. "I love this country, especially the city of Barcelona, and the people in Spain have always been very warm."

A statement released by the team added: 'McLaren-Mercedes have raced and tested on Spanish circuits for many years. Everyone connected with the team regards Spain and the Spanish people with great affection, Lewis included. It is not right the way he is being treated."

Hamilton became a figure of hate within the country after former team-mate and national hero Fernando Alonso complained publicly last season that he was receiving inferior treatment at McLaren. The fall-out was such that the Spaniard left the Woking-based outfit at the end of the campaign, two years before his three-year contract was due for renewal and having come within a single point of claiming a third consecutive drivers' world crown.

"The only thing that I have done is to try to give the best of myself and try to win the championship," Hamilton added in an interview with sportlifepress.com. "At no point have I tried to deliberately prejudice Fernando, but the fight has been very tough and my image in Spain has been severely damaged."

Following Pradera's insistence that 'no type of offensive behaviour can be tolerated' in an interview with La Vanguardia newspaper, the sport's governing body issued threats that strict sanctions would be imposed and Spain could even lose its two grands prix - in Barcelona and Valencia - should there be any repeat of what happened over the weekend.

Now the British Government has got involved in the row too, with sports minister Gerry Sutcliffe demanding the FIA take immediate action, particularly with the latest incident uncomfortably echoing the racist abuse suffered by English footballers in Spain in recent years. In 2004, Spanish football fans taunted Rio Ferdinand and Shaun Wright-Phillips with monkey chants during a match in Madrid, for which the Spanish Football Association was fined £44,750. Just a month earlier, Spain's national football coach Luis Aragones had been forced to pay £2,000 for making derogatory comments about former Arsenal star Thierry Henry.

"I was shocked by these sickening images," the BBC quotes Sutcliffe as saying after being shown pictures of spectators wearing black make-up and T-shirts with 'Hamilton's Family' written on the front and 'Alonso No. 1' on the back. "How on earth were fans dressed like this allowed into the circuit?

"Racism should not be tolerated, and this is not the first time British sportsmen have been racially abused in Spain. This brings into question whether the grand prix should be held at this track.

"I am going to write to the FIA to ask what action they are going to take in response to this. I am also going to write to the Spanish sports minister to express our ongoing concern about racism suffered by our sportsmen."

The Spanish motorsport federation (RFE), meanwhile, issued a stinging condemnation of those fans who had abused Hamilton, highlighting its 'absolute repulsion' at the behavior whilst seeking to stress that the problems concerned only a small and unrepresentative group of spectators present. It also praised the circuit organisers for removing the offensive banners, and said the RFE had asked them to strengthen security measures to avoid similar trouble in future.

'The Federation wants to show its absolute repulsion at these incomprehensible incidents,' a statement read, 'and demonstrate its support and solidarity for the McLaren team and especially their driver Lewis Hamilton.

'These type of idiots who are confusing sporting rivalry with violence should be aware that the Federation has a zero-tolerance approach to this issue.'

In its own statement, the Circuit de Catalunya expressed similar sentiments.

'The Circuit de Catalunya wishes to explain its position regarding the actions of a minority of spectators on Friday, 1 February during the test session of Formula 1 teams,' it read. 'The total number of spectators during the three days of the event was 55,000 fans, with a general attitude of respectful and excellent behaviour during the whole session.

'The Circuit de Catalunya particularly wants to thank the majority of fans for their attitude, and kindly seeks public recognition of this, but we strongly support the FIA's position with regards to fighting against all racial, political or religious discrimination in motorsport.

'The Circuit de Catalunya will not allow even the smallest incident to repeat itself within its facilities, and new measures are currently being taken into consideration in addition to those implemented during the latest sessions. These measures have been studied with the support of the Catalan Police and the circuit's security services, and they will be reinforced in the upcoming test sessions and at the Gran Premio de España Telefónica de Formula 1.

'The Circuit de Catalunya will not accept any abuse of [its] image through racist attitudes or attacks on sporting competitions. The circuit requests the grand prix to be the genuine meeting point for all the different supporters of drivers and teams in our sport, especially to represent the welcome and sporting values of our country and our national sponsor.

'In case of sanctions, the Circuit de Catalunya may consider the possibility of taking legal action against those who caused the incidents, regardless of the magnitude.'

McLaren will return to Spain to resume its pre-season testing in the build-up to the start of the 2008 campaign at the southern circuit of Jerez from 12-14 February.