en Keating, a two-time class champion in the World Endurance Championship, will return to the series for his home race in Austin next month.
Keating will join Proton Competition, driving a Ford LMGT3 at the Circuit of the Americas on September 1 for his first WEC race appearance since leaving the series (with the exception of Le Mans), having won his second GTE-Am title last year.
The 52-year-old American will race the No. 88 Mustang GT3 alongside factory driver Dennis Olsen and Mikkel Pedersen.
He will replace the mandatory bronze driver in every LMGT3 lineup occupied for the first four races by Giorgio Roda and then team boss Christian Ried at the last race held at Interlagos in July.
The winner of the GTE-Am title with Corvette Racing and TF Sport Aston Martin in 2022 and 2023 respectively has opted not to chase a hat-trick of GT titles in the WEC this year in the inaugural LMGT3 season.
Last September, he told Motorsport.com that he wanted to scale back his racing activities in 2024 and focus on a single IMSA program in North America.
#33 Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C8.R: Ben Keating
Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images
Keating explained that his decision was driven by a lack of time, as the WEC calendar was extended by one race.
But he will return to the WEC, a series he has competed in since the 2019-20 season, in what is expected to be a unique outing for him, as Keating’s dealership group is based in Texas and includes several Ford outlets across the state.
The WEC 24 Hours of Le Mans appearance in June was part of his programme with United Autosports in the IMSA LMP2 class, where he is seeking a third title following triumphs in 2021 and 2022 with PR1/Mathiasen.
The only other change to the WEC entry list at Austin, announced on Wednesday, is the return of Harry Tincknell to Proton’s Porsche 963 LMDh in the Hypercar class.
The Briton skipped Interlagos because, as a Ford works driver, his IMSA GT Daytona program with Multimatic Motorsports took precedence and he contested the Canadian round of the North American series at Mosport. The team did not replace him in Brazil, however, with Neel Jani and Julien Andlauer racing only as a pair.
#64 Ford Multimatic Motorsports Ford Mustang GT3: Harry Tincknell, Mike Rockenfeller
Photo by: Jake Galstad / Motorsport Images
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