Ben Kennedy (racing driver)

Ben Kennedy

Kennedy at Bristol Motor Speedway in 2015
Born (1991-12-26) December 26, 1991
Daytona Beach, Florida
Awards 2014 Camping World Truck Series Rookie of the Year
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
1 race run over 1 year
Car no., team No. 2 (Richard Childress Racing)
2016 position 106th
Best finish 106th (2016)
First race 2016 American Ethanol E15 250 (Iowa)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 1 0
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career
72 races run over 4 years
Truck no., team No. 33/24 (GMS Racing)
2016 position 7th
Best finish 7th (2016)
First race 2013 UNOH 200 (Bristol)
Last race 2016 Ford EcoBoost 200 (Homestead)
First win 2016 UNOH 200 (Bristol)
Wins Top tens Poles
1 24 1
Statistics current as of November 18, 2016.

Benjamin "Ben" Kennedy (born December 26, 1991) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He currently competes full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, driving the No. 33 and No. 24 Chevrolet Silverados for GMS Racing, while also competing part-time in the Xfinity Series, driving the No. 2 Chevrolet Camaro for Richard Childress Racing.

Personal life

Kennedy is the son of Lesa France Kennedy and Dr. Bruce Kennedy, grandson of Bill France, Jr. and great-grandson of Bill France, Sr., the founder of NASCAR. He is a 2014 graduate of the University of Florida, with a degree in sports management.[1]

Racing career

Kennedy's 2013 K&N East car

Kennedy began his racing career on the short tracks of central Florida, winning championships in Super Late Models at Orlando Speedworld, and in Pro Truck racing at Orlando Speedworld and New Smyrna Speedway.[2] He made his touring series debut in the K&N Pro Series East in 2010, and began racing the series full-time in 2011.[2]

In 2012, in addition to running the full K&N Pro Series East schedule, Kennedy competed in the first Euro Racecar Series event competed under NASCAR sanctioning, winning the event at Tours Speedway, the first NASCAR race held on an oval in Europe.[3]

After finishing ninth in series points in 2012,[2] Kennedy was named by Fox Sports as one of NASCAR's "drivers 25 and under to watch" in January 2013.[4] In April 2013, Kennedy won his first career race in the K&N Pro Series East, in the series' first race held at Five Flags Speedway in Kennedy's native Florida.[5] Kennedy also announced that he would be driving a truck prepared by Turner Scott Motorsports in three Camping World Truck Series races in the 2013 season,[1] running in events at Bristol Motor Speedway, Iowa Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway;[6] he ran a total of five races, posting a best finish of fourth at Martinsville Speedway.[7]

In December 2013, it was announced that Kennedy would drive the No. 31 Chevrolet Silverado full-time in the 2014 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season for Turner Scott Motorsports, competing for Rookie of the Year.[7] He got 8 top tens and won ROTY honors. The team closed at the end of the season.

In December 2014, it was announced that Kennedy would move to Red Horse Racing, driving the No. 11 Local Motors Toyota Tundra.

On July 9, 2015, on the last lap in Kentucky, Kennedy was clipped by David Gilliland into the fence where his back of his truck received hard damage, causing the race to be red flagged and eventually ended prematurely, though he was not injured.[8]

On February 14, 2016, he announced his return to Red Horse Racing with new sponsor JACOB Companies. However, on April 15, RHR announced Kennedy had parted ways with the team.[9] Ten days later, Kennedy joined GMS Racing to drive the No. 33 Chevrolet Silverado.[10] On August 17, 2016, after a falter by both Daniel Suárez and William Byron, he won the August Bristol race after a duel with Brett Moffitt.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Xfinity Series

Camping World Truck Series

1 Ineligible for series points

References

  1. 1 2 Spencer, Lee (April 16, 2013). "Kennedy has bright future in racing". Fox Sports. Retrieved 2013-04-18.
  2. 1 2 3 "NASCAR Home Tracks: Ben Kennedy". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group LLC. February 2013. Retrieved 2013-04-18.
  3. ↑ Christley, Jason (July 7, 2012). "Kennedy Makes History At Tours". NASCAR.com. Turner Sports. Retrieved 2013-04-18.
  4. ↑ "Drivers 25 and under to watch: Ben Kennedy". Fox Sports. January 17, 2013. Retrieved 2013-04-18.
  5. ↑ "Ben Kennedy wins in Pensacola". The Daytona Beach News-Journal. Daytona Beach, FL. April 13, 2013. Retrieved 2013-04-18.
  6. ↑ Kelly, Godwin (April 15, 2013). "Kennedy enjoys first win; ready for truck debut". The Daytona Beach News-Journal. Daytona Beach, FL. Retrieved 2013-04-18.
  7. 1 2 "Ben Kennedy to drive for Turner Scott Motorsports". Yahoo! Sports. December 16, 2013. Retrieved 2013-12-16.
  8. ↑ Bromberg, Nick (July 9, 2015). "Ben Kennedy's truck gets into catchfence at Kentucky (Video)". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
  9. ↑ White, Tucker (April 17, 2016). "Ben Kennedy parts company with Red Horse Racing". SpeedwayMedia.com. Bristol, Tennessee: USA Today Sports Digital Properties. Retrieved April 17, 2016.
  10. ↑ Knight, Chris (April 25, 2016). "Ben Kennedy Set To Join GMS Racing". Catchfence. Retrieved April 25, 2016.

External links

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