Mentor and Defending Champion Reunite at 2026 National Truck Driving Championships

Defending NTDC Grand Champion David Comings and mentor Scott Meyers return to Pittsburgh for the 2026 National Truck Driving Championships after qualifying through North Dakota competition.

The 2026 National Truck Driving Championships (NTDC) are underway in Pittsburgh, where 429 state champions from across the United States are competing for national titles. Among them are North Dakota FedEx Freight teammates David Comings and Scott Meyers, whose mentor-student relationship has developed into one of the competition’s most recognizable stories.

Comings returns as the defending NTDC Grand Champion after winning both the 5-Axle division and the overall Grand Championship in Minneapolis in 2025. Meyers qualified in the Sleeper division after completing a milestone of his own by earning state championships in all eight CDL vehicle classes contested at the North Dakota Truck Driving Championships.

A Practice Course Sparked the Beginning

Their journey together began in 2019 when Comings noticed a practice course set up at the FedEx Freight terminal in Fargo, North Dakota. After asking Meyers what the orange cones were for, he was introduced to the Truck Driving Championships and invited to learn more about the competition. That conversation eventually led Comings to begin practicing alongside Meyers and fellow FedEx Freight driver Chris Scholand.

Watching Meyers and Scholand compete at the North Dakota Truck Driving Championships later that year strengthened Comings’ interest in competing himself, to eventually qualify for the national competition.

Preparing for Competition

The COVID-19 pandemic suspended state and national championships until 2022, but the break gave Comings additional time to prepare for every phase of the competition. Along with practicing the driving course, he studied the American Trucking Associations’ Facts For Drivers manual, which serves as the written test study guide for state and national championships. Written test scores and pre-trip inspections account for a significant portion of a competitor’s overall score before the driving course begins.

Comings won his first North Dakota state title in 2022, earning his first trip to the National Truck Driving Championships. Meyers and Scholand also connected him with experienced FedEx Freight competitors who helped him become familiar with the national event during his rookie appearance.

A National Championship Followed

Comings returned to the National Truck Driving Championships in 2023 and again in 2024, reaching the championship round before falling short of a national title. Encouragement from Meyers and Scholand following the 2024 competition helped him remain focused on the next opportunity rather than the disappointment of the final driving course.

That persistence paid off in 2025 when Comings won the 5-Axle National Championship before earning the overall NTDC Grand Championship, becoming the nation’s top professional truck driver. Meyers was in attendance to watch the victory after making the trip to Minneapolis specifically to support his longtime teammate.

North Dakota Sends Three FedEx Freight Drivers

North Dakota is represented at this year’s National Truck Driving Championships by three FedEx Freight drivers. Along with Comings in the 4-Axle division and Meyers in the Sleeper division, Chris Scholand qualified in the Tanker division after winning his state championship.

While each driver is competing in a different vehicle class, the three have continued practicing together, sharing observations and helping each other prepare throughout the season. That combination of friendly competition and teamwork has produced multiple state championships and another return trip to trucking’s premier driving competition.