Doc Hudson is the retired racing champion who lives in Radiator Springs in Pixar’s Cars.
Doc initially appears to be the town’s respected judge and physician, but Lightning McQueen eventually learns that he was once the Fabulous Hudson Hornet. Doc won three Piston Cups before a crash ended his racing career and left him bitter about being forgotten.
His character is based on the Hudson Hornet, a real American car associated with stock-car racing in the early 1950s. The film uses Doc’s history to connect fictional racing with the real heritage of NASCAR-era automobiles.
Paul Newman provided Doc Hudson’s voice in Cars. Newman’s performance was his final voice role in a feature film. Doc does not appear as an active living character in Cars 3, although his legacy strongly influences Lightning’s later career.