Doc Hudson is the retired race car who mentors Lightning McQueen in Pixar’s Cars. He lives in Radiator Springs and initially hides his past as a champion racer.
Doc was once known as the Fabulous Hudson Hornet, a celebrated competitor in the fictional Piston Cup. His racing career ended after a crash and a long recovery, and he became bitter toward the racing world. McQueen’s arrival forces Doc to confront those memories and eventually share his knowledge.
Doc’s design is based on the Hudson Hornet, a real American car associated with the early 1950s. The real Hudson Hornet was notable in NASCAR, and the film uses that history as part of Doc’s backstory.
Paul Newman voiced Doc Hudson in Cars. Newman was a celebrated actor and a real-life racing enthusiast. Doc does not appear as a living character in Cars 2, although his memory and legacy remain important to McQueen. He is distinct from The King, Chick Hicks, and Sheriff, who are other characters in the first film.