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Ben Keating | |
|---|---|
 Keating at the2025 6 Hours of São Paulo | |
| Born | (1971-08-18)August 18, 1971 (age 54) Tomball, Texas, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Texas A&M University |
| Employer(s) | Owner,Keating Auto Group |
| World Endurance Championship career | |
| Debut season | 2006 |
| Racing licence |  FIA Bronze |
| Teams | Team Project 1 The Racers Group Riley Motorsports TI Automotive Racing PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports TF Motorsports |
| Wins | 2023Road America 2023Sebring 1000 Miles 2014Circuit of the Americas |
| Previous series | |
| Viper Racing League (2007–2008) North American Road Racing Association (2009–2010) Dodge Viper Cup (2010–2012) North American Endurance Championship (2012) American LeMans Series (2013) | |
| Championship titles | |
| 2008 Viper Racing League National Champion 2009 & 2010 NARRA National Champion 2011 & 2012 Dodge Viper Cup National Champion 2021 IMSA SportsCar Championship LMP2 Champion | |
Benjamin Edward Keating[1] (born August 18, 1971) is an Americanracing driver and business owner operating out ofVictoria, Texas. Keating is the owner of 30 car auto dealerships acrossTexas, The Keating Auto Group. Since starting auto racing in 2007, he has competed in many auto races worldwide, including the24 Hours of Le Mans,24 Hours of Daytona,12 Hours of Sebring, and most recently theWorld Endurance Championship. He is the only American driver to have won multiple World Championships. Keating began racing in 2007 after receiving a weekend track driving course as a Christmas present from his wife.
Ben Keating has been surrounded by the car industry his entire life. Growing up, he washed cars and parked them on the front line at theFord dealership owned by his father, which provided Keating an inside look into the dynamics of auto dealerships. Keating eventually found himself in an internship at Service Group during his junior and senior years atTexas A&M University.
During his internship in Service Group, Keating trained staff and managers at multiple dealerships. In 1995 when he graduated from A&M with a degree inEngineering, Keating sold cars at Covert Ford inAustin, Texas. Soon after he became the Used Car Sales Manager at Tomball Ford which was owned by his father and later became a minority owner himself.[2]
Keating purchased Port Lavaca Ford in 2002.[3] That was followed by Port Lavaca Dodge (2002) then Port Lavaca Chevrolet (2004). As of 2024 Keating owned 30 dealerships, generating about $3 billion in annual revenue and selling over 50,000 cars annually. In 2023, the Keating Auto Group was ranked 1st as the Largest Privately Held Auto Group in Texas as well as the 9th Top Privately Held Dealership Group in the United States.[1] Automotive News ranked the Keating Auto Group as the 15th Largest Auto Group in the Nation.[4] In 2024, Keating was nominated forTime Magazine Dealer of the Year Award.[5]
At each of his stores the general manager is also a minority partner of the business.[6]
Ben Keating has been actively involved in various philanthropic initiatives, particularly within his local community in Victoria, Texas. He played a pivotal role in introducing and expanding Young Life, a faith-based mentorship program for teenagers, to the Victoria area. Under his leadership, the program grew from a small volunteer initiative at a single high school to serving three schools, providing guidance and support to local youth.[7]
In addition to his work with Young Life, Keating has contributed to several educational and community-focused organizations. He has supported the Vine School, which specializes in educating children with autism spectrum disorder, as well as the Boys & Girls Club of Victoria, St. Joseph High School, and the Golden Crescent Habitat for Humanity. His philanthropic efforts also extend to local economic development, including his involvement with the Victoria Economic Development Corporation.[7]
Keating has demonstrated a strong commitment to education through his contributions to Texas A&M University, his alma mater. He established a $4 million endowment to support a technical sales minor and a technical sales lab within the Department of Engineering Technology and Industrial Distribution. Additionally, he serves on the advisory board for the department, furthering his dedication to fostering educational opportunities in his field.[7]
Through these initiatives, Keating has made a lasting impact on his community, emphasizing mentorship, education, and economic development.
Keating began racing in 2007 after receiving a weekend track driving course as aChristmas present from his wife. In 2007, he began racing a2000 Dodge Viper GTS in the Viper Racing League (VRL), a league that began as track days forViper enthusiasts. Keating received aDNF in his first race, an event atSebring International Raceway. In 2007 Keating participated in the full VRL series and in 2008, his second full year in the league, Keating won the VRL National Championship.[8] After the 2008 season, the VRL reorganized into the North American Road Racing Association.[9]
In 2009, Keating participated in the NARRA US GT Championship, a 13-round series at 7 venues across the Continental United States.[10] Driving a Viper Competition Coupe, Keating claimed the national championship. He would repeat this feat in 2010.
In 2010 Keating also began racing in a new Dodge SRT-sponsored event, the 5-city, 10-race Dodge Viper Cup.[11] Driving the specially designedViper ACR-X, Keating finished 2nd in the inaugural Viper Cup with race wins atVirginia International Raceway andPocono Raceway.[12] Keating finished the series with 501 points, 106 points behind first place. During the 2011 Viper Cup, Keating would record 4 race wins (New Jersey Motorsports Park,[13]Virginia International Raceway,[14]Texas World Speedway[15] andDaytona). Going into the final race of the season Keating held a 58-point advantage in the Viper Cup standings (a win being worth 60), and claimed the national championship by 20 points despite being forced into 15th place by a late-race collision.[16][17] In 2012 Keating would dominate the series and repeat as national champion, recording 6 wins (Road Atlanta (both races),[18]Road America (both races),Monticello Motor Club,[19] andWatkins Glen) as well as three other top 5 finishes.[20]
Keating made hisRolex Sports Car Series debut at theRolex 24 Hours of Daytona in 2011, racing in the Viper Exchange.com No. 66Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. Racing forThe Racer's Group (TRG), Keating and co-driversDominik Farnbacher,Tim George Jr. andLucas Luhr placed 13th in their class (27th overall), completing 612 laps with a total time of 21:40:37.038.[21]
The following year, Keating participated in a full season of theNorth American Endurance Championship, a subset of theGrand-AM Rolex Sports Car Series consisting of three races: theRolex 24 Hours of Daytona, theSix Hours of The Glen,[22] and the Brickyard Grand Prix atIndianapolis Motor Speedway.[23] Keating drove the No. 66 Porsche in all three races. Keating pulled double-duty during the2012 24 Hours of Daytona, also taking a shift inThe Racer's Group's No. 68 Porsche GT3 Cup.[24]
Keating would participate in theRolex 24 Hours of Daytona again in 2013, driving the No. 66 car along with co-driversFarnbacher,Kuno Wittmer, andJorg Bergmeister. They would go on to place 20th in class (31st overall), completing 622 laps with a time of 23:57:15.712.[25]
| Rolex Sports Car Series results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Event | Class | No | Team | Car | Co-drivers | Laps | Total Time | Position | Class Pos. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011 | 24 Hours of Daytona | GT | 66 |  The Racer's Group (TRG) | Porsche 997 GT3 Cup |  Dominik Farnbacher | 612 | 21:40:37.038 | 27 | 13 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | 24 Hours of Daytona | GT | 66 | TRG | Porsche 997 GT3 Cup | Dominik Farnbacher | 721 | 24:01:42.169 | 17 | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | 24 Hours of Daytona | GT | 68 | TRG | Porsche 997 GT3 Cup | Carlos Gómez | 640 | 24:01:45.739 | 37 | 24 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | Six Hours of The Glen | GT | 66 | TRG | Porsche 997 GT3 Cup |  Damien Faulkner | 137 | 4:37:25.155 | 29 | 19 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | Brickyard Grand Prix | GT | 66 | TRG | Porsche 997 GT3 Cup | Jorg Bergmeister | 90 | 3:01:18.879 | 18 | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013 | 24 Hours of Daytona | GT | 66 | TRG | Porsche 997 GT3 Cup | Dominik Farnbacher | 622 | 23:57:15.712 | 31 | 20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In 2013, Keating made the jump into theAmerican Le Mans Series, competing in the series'final season. Keating, with co-driversDamien Faulkner andCraig Stanton in the No. 66 Porsche, would finish 5th in the GT-challenge (GTC) class in the series' opening event, the12 Hours of Sebring.[26] Keating would continue to race with Faulkner for most of the series. On September 21, Keating and Faulkner would score their first victory of the season at theCircuit of the Americas inAustin, Texas. In front of his friends and family from around Texas, Keating drove the first 70 minutes of the race, then handed off to Faulkner, who completed the victory with a winning margin of 12.94 seconds.[27][28] Keating and Faulkner followed their first victory up with another winning effort atVirginia International Raceway.[29] The two late-season victories would prove a boon to Keating's final position in the standings, providing him with 40 of his 84 total points and earning him an 8th-place finish in the GTC class (out of 46 drivers).[30]
TheLMP2 is in the classic WYNN’S livery. The team for LMP2 consists of Ben Keating,Mikkel Jensen, andScott Huffaker. The LMP2 results as of Nov 14, 2021:
Ben and his team won theIMSA Championship and theMichelin North American Endurance Cup for LMP2.
Keating won his third consecutive IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup. He finished seventh in the GTD season and had a victory at Virginia International Raceway. Also 2019, Keating became the first person to enter a Ford GT in Le Mans privately. The team placed 3rd but was later disqualified due to a capacity issue with the car's fuel cell.
Keating won his second consecutive IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTD title. He finished third in the GTD championship by winning a victory at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park and two third-place runs at Laguna Seca and Sebring.
Keating competed in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in a Mercedes AMG. He partnered with the Riley Motorsports Team. The car is a naturally aspirated, 6.3-liter V8 Mercedes-AMG GT3 based on the Mercedes-AMG GT road cars. They competed in the IMSA GT Daytona (GTD) class. 2016 In December 2015, Viper Exchange announced they would again be sponsoring two Vipers in the 2016 running of the24 Hours of Daytona.[31] Keating will once again take shifts in both the No. 93 and No. 33 Vipers as he seeks to defend his2015 victory. Keating will be joined in the No. 33 byDominik Farnbacher, who helped drive the No. 93 to Daytona victory in 2015, andLe Mans co-driversMarc Miller andJeroen Bleekemolen.[31] Keating was joined in the No. 93 car byTrans-Am SeriesTA2 Champion Gar Robinson.[31]
Keating followed up on 2015's winning success with his most successful IMSAWeatherTech SportsCar Championship season yet in 2016. Racing the full season with Bleekemolen for the third-straight year, Keating once again kicked off the schedule with double duty in the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona. He and co-drivers Jeff Mosing, Eric Foss, Gar Robinson, and Damien Faulkner put the No. 93 Viper on the GTD-class podium for the second-straight year after the 2015 Daytona victory. The No. 93 gained three positions in the race's final hour for a third-place finish. Keating and the No. 33 team in turn recovered from a Saturday night accident to finish 10th, which made ViperExchange.com the only two-car GTD team in the Rolex 24 to place both of its entries in the top 10.
Keating scored his first win of the year inDetroit. A popular victory in the hometown of the Viper, Keating stayed in touch with the lead pack throughout his race-opening stint after qualifying sixth, racing his way into the lead as the GTD field cycled through pit stops. Bleekemolen took over and kept the No. 33 upfront to the finish.
The year's second victory followed one race after Lime Rock at Road America, where Keating and Bleekemolen co-drove to the second-year-in-a-row victory. The win moved Keating, Bleekemolen, and ViperExchange.com to third in the GTD class point standings, putting them in contention for a solid championship finish for the first time.
The No. 33 team arrived at Road Atlanta second in points for the season-endingPetit Le Mans. Again co-driving with Miller, Keating and Bleekemolen did everything they could to gain a great result, starting from the pole and winning what would be the final race for a Viper in the IMSA GTD competition. Although the championship-winning Ferrari team build a big enough cushion to win the championship despite the No. 33 team's strong finish at Road Atlanta, Keating and company finished second in the team and driver GTD standings.
The 2016 season also saw Keating compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the second-straight year. After debuting in a GTE-Am class Viper GTS-R in 2015 with Bleekemolen and Miller, Keating switched to the LMP2 division in 2016, co-driving an open-top Nissan Oreca 03 with Bleekemolen and Marc Goossens. Despite a race-long string of issues, Keating finished Le Mans for the first time, driving the Oreca across the finish line for a 15th-place result in class.
Keating started off the 2015 season pulling double-duty at the2015 24 Hours of Daytona, taking turns in both the No. 93 and No. 33 Vipers. Keating would score his first win of the young season in the No. 93 Viper with previous Daytona co-driversDominik Farnbacher (2011–2013) andKuno Wittmer (2013), along with AmericanAl Carter. The No. 33 Viper would come in 9th in the event.[32] Keating would drive in both cars again in the subsequent race, the2015 12 Hours of Sebring, guiding the No. 93 car (with Carter and BelgianMarc Goossens) to a Top Five finish. The No. 33 Viper (withJeroen andSebastiaan Bleekemolen) would again come in 9th after a radiator issue late in the race knocked the car out of the lead.[33][34] Keating and Bleekemolen followed up with another strong performance and snagged their first class win of the year in theContinental Tire Road Race Showcase at Road America.[35][36] As a result of their win at Road America, the No. 33 car was placed under some competitive restrictions limiting the performance of the car during the next race, the Oak Tree Grand Prix atVIR. These restrictions limited the No. 33 Viper to a 7th-place finish, preventing Keating from taking a third consecutive podium.[37][38] Keating and Bleekemolen would come back strong though, and charged back into the winner's circle with a come-from-behind victory atCircuit of the Americas. Keating was hit with a penalty early, but strong driving from him and Jeroen allowed them to overcome that setback and take the victory.[39][40]
After the American Le Mans Series merged into the Rolex Sports Car Series after the 2013 season, Keating participated in the 2014Tudor United SportsCar Championship season. Keating joined with Dutch siblingsJeroen andSebastiaan Bleekemolen in the No. 33 Dodge Viper GT3-R forRiley Motorsports. Joined by French driverEmmanuel Collard, Keating and the Bleekemolen brothers competed in the opening event, the24 Hours of Daytona, completing 615 laps over the day-long event, finishing 19th (40th overall).[41] They would go on to record Top Five finishes in the next two races, placing third in the Brickyard Grand Prix (Indianapolis Motor Speedway[42]) and fourth in theRoad America 500.[43] Keating would record his second win of the season with a win at his home-state event at theCircuit of the Americas.[44] The two wins, combined with his two top 5 finishes, propelled Keating into 14th place in the final driver points standings.[45]
FIA World Endurance Championship
Ben Keating and Nicky Catsburg and Nico Varrone raced C8R for Corvette Racing. This was the last year of GTE.
Ben Keating was honored by being selected by WEC as the Gentleman Driver of the Year. Ben was driving with the TF Motorsports team in an Aston Martin
Keating competed in theWorld Endurance Championship (WEC) in a Corvette C8.R withCorvette Racing. The Corvette ran in the GT-Am class of the WEC. It was a GTE spec car.
The WEC results as of Nov 07, 2021:
Ben and his team finished P2 in the WEC Championship for GT-Am.
Keating joined the FIA World Endurance Championship for the 2019–2020 season. He also entered several IMSA races. After speaking with many teams, he decided to join Team Project 1, having confirmed a full-season program alongside longtime partner Jeroen Bleekemolen and Felipe Fraga in the team's No. 57 Porsche 911 RSR. He had beat this team in Le Mans but was disqualified due to an issue with the car's fuel cell.
In addition to these races, Keating participated in a Viper Days Reunion event at Road America during the August 26- 29th weekend and plans to race in theIntercontinental GT 8 Hour race at Indy in mid-October. Keating's team looks to repeat their win last year at the Indy 8hr in the Pro-Am class.
On April 16, 2015, theAutomobile Club de l'Ouest announced that the Viper Exchange.com/Riley Motorsports entry into the 201524 Hours of Le Mans had been approved, with American Marc Miller joining Keating and Jeroen Bleekemolen as co-driver. The team will drive the No. 53Dodge Viper GTS-R in the GTE Am class. The team was first among the reserves for the event, and the entry gives Keating the opportunity to accomplish the feat of winning both the24 Hours of Daytona and the24 Hours of Le Mans events in the same year. This would be the first24 Hours of Le Mans for both Keating and Miller, while Jeroen earned his 10th consecutive start in the event.[46] Jeroen finished fourth in class in qualifying, and so the team had good position for the start of the race. Bleekemolen continued the strong start with his opening shift in the car, leading for most of the third hour, and Keating continued to maintain a top-four position during the second shift. Miller took the third shift through much of the night, and the team entered the final shift, again driven by Bleekemolen, in fifth place. However, Bleekemolen began to notice issues with the gearbox. After replacing the gearbox failed to resolve the problems, the No. 53 car was forced to retire from the race at 13:45, having completed 304 laps.[47][48] Keating continued to race at Le Mans in 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023.
VLF Automotive is a joint venture between designerHenrik Fisker, former GM Vice ChairBob Lutz and manufacturer Gilbert Villarreal. Lutz and Villarreal began VL automotive in 2012, and in 2013 unveiled theVL Destino, a luxury automobile based on Fisker'sKarma electric car.[49] However, VL did away with the Karma's fully electricpowertrain and replaced it with the6.2L V8 GM engine used in theChevrolet Corvette ZR1.[50][51] EventuallyFisker joined the team, which then became VLF automotive.[49] VLF then began work on a new automobile built around the8.4L V10 of theDodge Viper, which would become theForce 1 V10.
Fisker and Keating met in 2015 and quickly developed a partnership, combining Fisker's legendary designs with Keating's extensive expertise with performance vehicles, particularly his intimate knowledge of theDodge Viper.[52] In particular, Keating helped design theactive suspension used in theForce 1 V10 using his decade of experience racing Vipers to tune the suspension for both on-the-road and on-the-track needs.[52][53] As part of the partnership, the first run of theForce 1 V10, totaling 50 cars, were sold entirely through Keating'sViper Exchange dealership.[54]
† As Keating was a guest driver, he was ineligible to score points.
* Season still in progress.
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position; races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | Class | Make | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Pos. | Points | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | TRG | GTC | Porsche 911 GT3 Cup | Porsche 3.8 LFlat-6 | SEB | LBH | LRP | MOS | MDO | ELK | BAL | LAG | PET 4 | 21st | 20 | [55] | |
| 2013 | TRG | GTC | Porsche 911 GT3 Cup | Porsche 4.0 LFlat-6 | SEB 5 | LBH 7 | LAG 4 | LRP 3 | MOS 8 | ELK DNF | BAL DNF | COA 1 | VIR 1 | PET 6 | 8th | 94 | [56] |
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position; races initalics indicate fastest lap)
† Points only counted towards the Michelin Endurance Cup, and not the overall LMP2 Championship
| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Riley Motorsports–TI Auto |  Jeroen BleekemolenMarc Miller | SRT Viper GTS-R | GTE Am | 304 | DNF | DNF |
| 2016 | Murphy Prototypes | Jeroen Bleekemolen Marc Goossens | Oreca 03R-Nissan | LMP2 | 323 | 34th | 15th |
| 2017 | Keating Motorsport | Ricky TaylorJeroen Bleekemolen | Riley Mk. 30-Gibson | LMP2 | 312 | 47th | 20th |
| 2018 | Keating Motorsport | Jeroen BleekemolenLuca Stolz | Ferrari 488 GTE | GTE Am | 334 | 28th | 3rd |
| 2019 | Keating Motorsports | Jeroen Bleekemolen Felipe Fraga | Ford GT | GTE Am | 334 | DSQ | DSQ |
| 2020 | Team Project 1 | Jeroen BleekemolenFelipe Fraga | Porsche 911 RSR | GTE Am | 326 | 40th | 14th |
| 2021 |  TF Sport |  Dylan PereiraFelipe Fraga | Aston Martin Vantage AMR | GTE Am | 339 | 26th | 2nd |
| 2022 | TF Sport |  Henrique Chaves Marco Sørensen | Aston Martin Vantage AMR | GTE Am | 343 | 34th | 1st |
| 2023 | Corvette Racing | Nicky Catsburg Nicolás Varrone | Chevrolet Corvette C8.R | GTE Am | 313 | 26th | 1st |
| 2024 | United Autosports USA | Filipe AlbuquerqueBen Hanley | Oreca 07-Gibson | LMP2 | 272 | 42nd | 13th |
| LMP2 Pro-Am | 6th | ||||||
| 2025 | TF Sport | Jonny Edgar Daniel Juncadella | Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R | LMGT3 | 339 | 39th | 7th |
| Sources:[69][70] | |||||||
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position; races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Class | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Rank | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–20 | Team Project 1 | LMGTE Am | Porsche 911 RSR | Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6 | SIL 10 | FUJ 3 | SHA 2 | BHR 1 | COA 11 | SPA 6 | LMS 8 | BHR 6 | 6th | 101.5 |
| 2021 | TF Sport | LMGTE Am | Aston Martin Vantage AMR | Aston Martin 4.0 L Turbo V8 | SPA 2 | ALG 7 | MNZ 12 | LMS 2 | BHR 1 | BHR Ret | 2nd | 90.5 | ||
| 2022 | TF Sport | LMGTE Am | Aston Martin Vantage AMR | Aston Martin 4.0 L Turbo V8 | SEB 2 | SPA 2 | LMS 1 | MNZ Ret | FUJ 1 | BHR 4 | 1st | 141 | ||
| 2023 | Corvette Racing | LMGTE Am | Chevrolet Corvette C8.R | Chevrolet 5.5 L V8 | SEB 1 | PRT 1 | SPA 2 | LMS 1 | MNZ 4 | FUJ 2 | BHR 7 | 1st | 173 | |
| 2025 | TF Sport | LMGT3 | Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R | ChevroletLT6.R 5.5 L V8 | QAT 1 | IMO 7 | SPA 13 | LMS 6 | SÃO 7 | COA Ret | FUJ 11 | BHR 6 | 6th | 78 |
| Sources:[69][71] | ||||||||||||||
