The 2025 Louisiana Truck Driving Championships, presented by the Louisiana Motor Truck Asoociation Foundation, was held this past weekend The two-day competition was held at the L’Auberge Baton Rouge and a specially made driving course across River Road from the L’Auberge’s main facilities.
This year’s competition saw 80 drivers participate, each completing three tests focused on testing a driver's knowledge and skills. All competitors were required to provide safe driving records, including a zero-accident report for the year.
Chad Rudesill, who drives for FedEx, was the competition's grand champion. He also won the three-axel van division.
Darrin Lemoine, who drives for Walmart, was the rookie of the year winner.
The team trophy was won by XPO.
FedEx Freight's Corey Mitchell won the mechanic's award.
Winners of the LMTA competition include:
Step Van
1st Place Nicholas Burgess Walmart
2nd Place Michael Brian FedEx
3rd Place Mario Powell FedEx
Straight Truck
1st Place Leroy Williams XPO
2nd Place Darrin Lemoine Walmart
3rd Place Corey Mitchell FedEx
3 Axle Van
1st Place Chad Rudesill FedEx
2nd Place David Jowers Old Dominion Freight Line
3rd Place Damien Hebert XPO
4 Axle Van
1st Place Larry Peltier Martin Brower
2nd Place Wallace Simien Walmart
3rd Place Shelton Winn Old Dominion Freight Line
5 Axle Van
1st Place Eric Courville FedEx
2nd Place Christopher Colomb Walmart
3rd Place John McLean Walmart
5 Axle Tank Truck
1st Place Curtis McMellon XPO
2nd Place Johnnie Long Walmart
3rd Place Patrick Rudesill FedEx
5 Axle Flatbed
1st Place Mark Collins Walmart
2nd Place Joseph Vital FedEx
3rd Place Warren Little FedEx
5 Axle Sleeper Cab
1st Place Patrick Bonvillian Old Dominion Freight Line
2nd Place Malcolm Taylor FedEx
3rd Place Joseph Guidry Walmart
Twin Truck
1st Place Wilbur Sansom FedEx
2nd Place Eddie Bonnet Old Dominion Freight Line
3rd Place Michael Greene Ergon Trucking
All first-place winners will represent the LMTA Foundation and the State of Louisiana in the 2025 American Trucking Association (ATA) National Truck Driving Championships in Minneapolis, Aug. 20 – 23.
The drivers competed in three categories:
- The written examination is an hour-long test that measures competitors' knowledge of the trucking industry, safe driving rules, first aid, and firefighting.
- The pre-trip inspection tests the driver's ability to thoroughly investigate the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMSCA) pre-trip inspection. Each driver is tasked with finding defects planted on a test vehicle within a limited time.
- The field test course sees contestants drive a vehicle through the specially designed course with problems designed to simulate conditions they may encounter during the everyday operation of a truck.
