Lil Wayne has won a ruling banning TV cameras from his upcoming trial on drugs charges - in a bid to prevent the court battle turning into a "media circus".

The rapper - real name Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. - was arrested in Yuma, Arizona in January at a Border Patrol checkpoint when officials allegedly discovered cocaine, ecstasy and marijuana on his tour bus.

Carter was booked on three drug possession charges, with a weapons charge subsequently dropped after the .40 calibre pistol found on the bus was discovered to be registered to Carter in Florida.

The star has yet to receive a date for his trial in the state, but has successfully banned the media from bringing cameras into the courtroom.

In a hearing at Arizona Superior Court on Friday, Judge Mark Wayne Reeves ruled media interest in the case is prompted "not by the facts but by Carter's celebrity status".

And Judge Reeves concluded the rapper's rights to a fair trial outweigh the media's desire to film or photograph court proceedings.

Carter is also facing trial in New York on gun possession charges stemming from a 2007 arrest in the Big Apple.

In March the star was exonerated of felony drug charges in Atlanta, Georgia after a judge ruled a police search at the time of his 2006 arrest in the state was carried out illegally.

(by Daniel Melia)