In Pixar's Cars, the season champion receives the Piston Cup.
The Piston Cup is the central championship trophy in the first film's racing storyline. Lightning McQueen, Chick Hicks, and The King finish the season tied for the lead, so a decisive race is scheduled at the Los Angeles International Speedway. The resulting event becomes the film's dramatic finale.
The fictional competition is modeled on American stock-car racing, especially NASCAR-style championship racing. Its cars, pit crews, sponsors, oval tracks, and points-based season structure all draw from that tradition, while the Piston Cup itself is an invented object for the Cars universe.
The trophy should not be confused with the Dinoco sponsorship. Dinoco is a major racing brand and sponsor associated with The King, while the Piston Cup is the championship award. Lightning's ambition to win it begins the story, but his understanding of victory changes by the conclusion.