Herbert, Lehto score third win.(Competition)

Johnny Herbert and JJ Lehto scored their third American Le Mans Series win of the season, driving the Champion Racing Audi R8 to victory in Miami.

The winning car finished 40.642 seconds ahead of the runner-up Team Joest Audi R8 of Frank Biela and Marco Werner. With their second-place finish, Biela and Werner moved closer to winning the 2003 LMP 900 class title, with only Lehto having any chance of unseating them in the season-ending Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta Oct. 18.

The Panoz LMP01 of Olivier Beretta and David Saelens finished third in the LMP 900 class, while Chris Dyson and Andy Wallace won the LMP 675 class in a Lola. Ferrari swept the GTS class with David Brabham and Darren Turner taking the win. Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell finished fourth in the class in their Corvette C5-R, good enough to clinch the 2003 driver's title. Sascha Maassen and Lucas Luhr won the GT class in the Alex Job Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RS.

Scheckter, Panther talking

Tomas Scheckter doesn't have a contract for next season and Panther Racing doesn't have a driver to replace the departing Sam Hornish Jr., but the two parties are talking about a plan to help one another. Several sources say the deal is done.

Scheckter's agent, Enrico Zanarini, and Panther co-own-er John Barnes confirmed they are interested in a deal. Zanarini said Scheckter also is interested in a possible return to Ganassi Racing, though. Chip Ganassi seemed to quash that possibility when he said Scheckter could "make his announcement.''

Panther is the only other team Scheckter is talking to. Barnes said several drivers are under consideration, but he has long been impressed with Scheckter, who won last year's race at Michigan.