WASHINGTON (AFP) - Disgraced former US cycling star Lance Armstrong has pleaded guilty to careless driving in connection with hitting two parked vehicles and having his girlfriend take the blame, the Aspen Daily News reported Wednesday.

Armstrong, who admitted taking performance-enhancing drugs in 2013 after being stripped of seven Tour de France triumphs the year before, posted a cheque for US$238.50 (S$324) to pay a fine and court costs, according to court records.

Paying the fine and pleading guilty means Armstrong, 43, will not have to appear in court. A March hearing date had been set in the matter.

Armstrong's girlfriend, Anna Hansen, had first been charged in the case of Armstrong's vehicle striking two parked cars on Dec 28.

She originally said she had been behind the wheel when they returned home from a party at the Aspen Art Museum, but under later questioning admitted Armstrong had been driving, not her.

The news comes two days after Texas firm SCA Promotions announced it had won a US$10 million arbitration case against Armstrong over bonus payments from his Tour de France triumphs from 1999-2005.

SCA wanted its money back in the wake of Armstrong's doping admission two years ago.

Armstrong still faces a federal lawsuit over fraud claims that could cost him US$100 million.