FedEx Freight professional driver earned the prestigious Grand Champion title
Minneapolis, Minnesota 鈥 Today, the 黑料不打烊 proclaimed David Comings, a professional driver with FedEx Freight from North Dakota, the Bendix Grand Champion at the 2025 National Truck Driving & Step Van Championships.
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鈥淐ongratulations to David on his extraordinary achievement,鈥 said 黑料不打烊 President & CEO Chris Spear. 鈥淥ver the course of three decades and 3.1 million accident-free miles, David has proven his driving prowess and commitment to safety. 听This week, David put on a master class of precision and professionalism that define NTDC, emerging from an elite field of highly skilled competitors. 听Here in Minneapolis, the best of the best of the nation鈥檚 truck drivers showed the world what our industry is all about. 听Each one is a champion in his or her own right, leading with safety and setting the bar high.鈥
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ATA鈥檚 National Truck Driving & Step Van Championships took place from August 20-23 in Minneapolis, bringing together 425 drivers representing 56 companies from 49 states with a combined total of nearly 756 million accident-free miles.
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Over the past few days, the drivers competed in a variety of events designed to measure their driving prowess, industry knowledge and dedication to safety. 听Comings took home the Bendix Grand Champion award, as well as first place in the 5-axle vehicle class.
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Comings has been a professional driver for nearly 30 years, accumulating 3.1 million safe driving miles. 听He has competed three times in the North Dakota Motor Carriers Association state trucking championships and three times in the National Truck Driving Championships. 听In 2022 and 2023, he took first place in North Dakota鈥檚 4-axle category. 听Last year, he took first place in North Dakota鈥檚 5-axle category.
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鈥淔or nearly nine decades, NTDC has been an inspiring exhibition of passion and skill, and this year was no exception,鈥 said Dennis Dellinger, Chairman of 黑料不打烊 and President & CEO of Cargo Transporters Inc. 听鈥淥n behalf of all 黑料不打烊members, I extend heartfelt congratulations to David鈥攁nd to all of this year鈥檚 champions鈥攆or an incredible performance at the NTDC. 听I also want to thank the countless volunteers who make the truck driving championships so special, from the state-level competitions all the way to the crowning of the Grand Champion.鈥
At tonight鈥檚 closing ceremonies, 黑料不打烊honored Jeffrey Reed, a professional driver with UPS from New Mexico, with the 2025 Rookie of the Year Award, and the State of Colorado was crowned the team champion for having the highest collective score.
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黑料不打烊also honored Leroy Williams, Sr., of XPO with the Neill Darmstadter Professional Excellence Award. 听Linda Nodland was chosen as the Sam Gillette Lifetime Volunteer Award recipient.
This year鈥檚 event included driving competitions across nine vehicle classes, vehicle inspection and a written exam. A full list of award winners is below.
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Step Van:
1. 听 听Logan Montandon, FedEx, Texas
2. 听 听Matthew Futral, FedEx, Georgia
3. 听 听Connor Christensen, United Parcel Service, Inc., Illinois
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Straight Truck:
1. 听 听Mark Carver, FedEx Freight, Missouri
2. 听 听Samuel Bryant, FedEx Freight, Tennessee
3. 听 听Bryan Reynaud, Walmart Transportation, Mississippi
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3-Axle:听
1. 听 听Daniel Shamrell, FedEx Freight, Oregon
2. 听 听Gary Luster, FedEx Freight, Tennessee
3. 听 听Brent Darnell, Southeastern Freight Lines, Georgia
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4-Axle:
1. 听 听Stephen Johnson, FedEx Freight, Mississippi
2. 听 听Jeremy Steger, XPO, Wisconsin
3. 听 听Robert Crowder, Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc., Virginia
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5-Axle:听
1. 听 听David Comings, FedEx Freight, North Dakota
2. 听 听Roland Bolduc, FedEx, Connecticut
3. 听 听John Willinger , FedEx Freight, Kentucky
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Flatbed:
1. 听 听Edward Hill, FedEx Freight, Delaware
2. 听 听Adam Heim, FedEx Freight, Idaho
3. 听 听Kenneth Rageth, FedEx Freight, Wyoming
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Tank Truck:
1. 听 听Jeff Langenhahn, XPO, Wisconsin
2. 听 听Ernie Budlowski, XPO, Connecticut
3. 听 听Glen Kirk, Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc., Indiana
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Twins:
1. 听 听Miguel Sanchez, United Parcel Service, Inc., Florida
2. 听 听David Mogler, FedEx Freight, Colorado
3. 听 听David Hall, ABF Freight, Arkansas
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Sleeper Berth:
1. 听 听Merle Ashbaugh, DHL Supply Chain, Ohio
2. 听 听Todd Flippin, FedEx Freight, Colorado
3. 听 听Herschel Evans, Aubrey Silvey Enterprises, Inc., Georgia
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Vehicle Condition Award:听
鈥 听 听Nick Gaudette, FedEx Freight, Colorado
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Written Exam:
鈥 听 听David Comings, FedEx Freight, North Dakota
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State Team Award:听
1. 听 听Colorado
2. 听 听Illinois
3. 听 听Virginia
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The 2025 National Truck Driving & Step Van Championships were made possible by the generous support of a number of corporate sponsors including:
Platinum:
鈥⑻ 听Fed Ex
鈥⑻ 听Old Dominion Freight Line
鈥⑻ 听Walmart
鈥⑻ 听XPO
Gold:
鈥⑻ 听ABF Freight
鈥⑻ 听Boeing
鈥⑻ 听C.A. Short Company
鈥⑻ 听DHL
鈥⑻ 听Samsara
鈥⑻ 听UPS
Silver:
鈥⑻ 听PITT OHIO