Just Peachy: Frito Lay’s Tony Johnson Wins 1st State Grand Champion Title

Just Peachy: Frito Lay’s Tony Johnson Wins 1st State Grand Champion Title

From National Truck Driving Championships by PodWheels

April 28, 2026 · 36 min

About this episode

Tony Johnson shares his experience and emotions after winning the Grand Champion title at the Georgia State TDC.

When veteran Frito Lay driver Tony Johnson heard his name announced as the Grand Champion at the Georgia State TDC Banquet on April 24th, he admittedly did a double take. Tony was still basking in the glow of winning back-to-back state titles in 5-Axle. He knew that he had punched his ticket to the NTDCs for the third time in the last four years. Being Georgia’s Grand Champion was not something that was on his radar. As you’ll hear, Tony felt a bit like a lottery winner when his name was called as the recipient of the Guy Young Award, which is presented to the Grand Champion of Georgia. In this episode of the podcast recorded less than 48 hours following his State TDC victories, Tony shares his initial thoughts and emotions about his performance on the course, in pre-trip and the written test. He also talks about how examining his experience in previous years at Nationals in the State helped him prepare, allowing him to approach the course in what became a more effective manner this year. Tony hopes to ride the momentum from the State TDC, along with more hard work and a Top 15 showing in last year’s Nationals, as part of his effort to reach the 5-Axle runoff and beyond at NTDC…

People in this episode

Guest: Tony Johnson

Topics covered

  • truck driving championships
  • state titles
  • Frito Lay
  • Tony Johnson
  • NTDC preparation
  • awards

Keywords

  • Tony Johnson
  • Frito Lay
  • Georgia State TDC
  • Grand Champion
  • NTDC 2026
  • Guy Young Award
  • truck driving

Sponsors

Lutzie 43 Foundation

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Frito Lay

Places: Georgia

More episodes of National Truck Driving Championships

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the National Truck Driving Championships podcast page.