MADRID, Oct 9 - The Spanish press focused on Fernando Alonso's jubilant celebrations on Monday after he took a commanding lead in the Formula One championship with victory in the Japanese Grand Prix.

His closest rival Michael Schumacher was forced to withdraw with an engine failure on Sunday leaving the Spaniard 10 points clear at the top and needing just one more point from the last race to claim back-to-back titles.

"The final blow," read the front page of sports daily AS while Mundo Deportivo said "The Champion's leap" with both carrying full-page photos of Alonso's jump for joy on the podium.

El Pais had a sequence of photos showing Alonso's leap with the phrase: "Fernando Alonso - just a small jump from the title."

Sports daily Marca had a tongue-in-cheek take on the story with a photo of a grinning Alonso holding up a spanner under the headline "Alonso has the key".

The world champion had been forced to retire in two of the previous four races, in Hungary and Italy, but it was Schumacher's Ferrari that failed to last the course in Japan.

It was the first time in six years the German had been forced to retire during a race.

The championship will be decided in Brazil on Oct 22.