The King
| The King | |||||||||
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| Vehicle type | 1970 Plymouth Superbird | ||||||||
| Occupation | Piston Cup racer for Dinoco (until 2005)
Cal Weathers' crew chief (2006-2016) | ||||||||
| Main portrayer(s) | Richard Petty
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- "This ain't a one-man deal, kid. You need to wise up, get yourself a good crew chief and a good team..."
- —Strip Weathers, Cars
Strip Weathers aka "the King", is a professional racing coach and retired racer who competed in the Piston Cup Racing Series for more than twenty years.[1] Strip is widely considered to be one of the greatest competitors in the sport's history, having won a record-breaking seven Piston Cup championships, and long possessing the coveted Dinoco sponsorship. Though he retired following Lightning McQueen's rookie season, The King would later return to the circuit as a coach, acting as crew chief for his nephew, Cal.
History
Cars
In Cars, when Darrell Cartrip and Bob Cutlass are introducing The King, Chick Hicks, and Lightning McQueen to the audience, they describe Weathers as having been "Dinoco's golden boy for years" and speculate on whether or not he will be able to pull off one last victory in the final race of his career.
As Lightning knows that Strip and Chick are both threats to his success, he decides to continue racing while all of the other racers are making pit stops. This decision ultimately causes both of his rear tires to blow out during the final lap, leaving Lightning struggling to reach the finish line, with both Weathers and Hicks catching up to him. The race results in the first three-way tie in Piston Cup history, leaving the audience stunned and excited. A tie-breaker race is set to be held at the Los Angeles International Speedway, which will determine who receives the Piston Cup trophy.
After the race, Lightning is approached by Weathers, who compliments him on his skill, but warns Lightning of his arrogance in not changing his tires. While The King is giving him advice, McQueen begins to daydream about winning the Dinoco sponsorship and becoming a celebrity. Immediately after, the three cars make their way to the winner's circle, where confetti is launched and the audience cheers.
At the race in Los Angeles, Weathers lead for most of the race. However, Lightning takes a considerable lead on the other two racers in the final lap. The King smiles because he is proud of Lightning. He is glad that Lightning became the race car that he wanted him to be all along. He doesn't attempt to retake the lead but instead, tries to keep ahead of Chick Hicks so that Chick doesn't try to hurt Lightning. But Chick, who is frustrated of constantly placing behind The King, performs an illegal PIT maneuver on Weathers, causing him to spin out of control and tumble onto the infield, receiving heavy damage in the process. As Lightning notices this on the big screen above him, he comes to a complete stop in front of the finish line, allowing Chick to pass and win the race. The stadium watches in silence and confusion as Lightning reverses into the field, and pushes The King to the finish line, wanting him to be able to finish his final race. As he is helped out by Lightning, he tells him that he willingly sacrificed his Piston Cup win for the sake of saving him, but McQueen dismisses it and says that it’s just an “empty cup”, learning that helping others is more important than winning.
McQueen's actions capture the attention of the audience, stealing the spotlight away from Chick, who is booed when he claims his trophy. Lynda Weathers kisses Lightning on the cheek and thanks Lightning for what he did, and Tex Dinoco offers McQueen the Dinoco sponsorship for his good sportsmanship, but Lightning instead chooses to stick with Rust-eze. Due to having been helped by McQueen end his career on a high note, finishing a best 2nd place, Weathers is also given applause by the fans as well, also acknowledging him as the “true winner” along with McQueen.
Later, The King, his Wife and Dale Earnhardt Jr. went to Radiator Springs. The King stated that The Hudson Hornet was his inspiration for Racing.
Cars: The Videogame
In Cars: The Videogame, The King appears as a playable character in the arcade and versus game modes. He can be unlocked with 12,000 Bonus Points, but can only be used in Piston Cup races. Since Strip had retired prior to the events of the game, much of Darrell Cartrip's commentary revolves around remarks about Weathers' return to the race track.
Though he does not make a physical appearance in the game's story mode, Strip is mentioned during the cutscene for Palm Mile Speedway, in which Cartrip remarks about how with The King off the circuit, that means that Lightning and Chick only have each other as rivals now.
Disney Infinity
In Disney Infinity, The King is one of the race cars that comes to Radiator Springs to compete in Luigi's international competition in the Cars Play Set, alongside the likes of Francesco Bernoulli, Chick Hicks, and more. Additionally, The King is one of the race cars that can be randomly selected to face the player in challenge races.
Preview videos for toys in the Cars Play Set, such as monster truck tires, will sometimes showcase The King using them. Since only the player has access to these toys, it is possible that Strip, like Finn McMissile, may have been intended to be a playable character at one point during the game's development.
Cars 3
In Cars 3, Strip returns as a crew chief for his nephew, Cal Weathers, who is now the Dinoco racer in the Piston Cup.[2] He appears at the beginning of the film, sarcastically commentating on Cal's poor comeback to McQueen asking if he's having a car wash. He later appears at the end of the film at the Florida 500 with his nephew, when Tex offers Cruz Ramirez the Dinoco sponsorship.
General information
Physical appearance
The King is painted Dinoco Blue, with the Dinoco sponsor and the number "43". On his trunk, he has a giant, tall blue spoiler. The King is a 1970 Plymouth Superbird with a 426 Hemi V8 engine, the car Richard Petty drove. The Plymouth Superbird was a heavily modified version of the Plymouth Road Runner, specifically designed for stock car racing. Its radical design was later banned by NASCAR. The King features slightly bigger wheels and a shortened wheelbase - an edit only for the film to make the car more visually appealing. His max speed is 200 MPH and his horsepower is 425 HP (317 kW). He can go 0-60 is 4.8 seconds.
Personality and traits
The King is kind and caring about others, much unlike Lightning McQueen's former persona as well as Chick Hicks and Jackson Storm's persona. He has a humble and calm attitude when racing and will not resort to cheating. He enjoys the quiet of his home, and spending time with his wife, Lynda Weathers, and his friends, such as Luke Pettlework.
Due to his kind nature, the King admires and respects Lightning McQueen’s skills and even telling him to get his act together. He also does respect him and his sportsmanship when he willingly forfeits the cup so he can help him finish his last race with dignity.
Powers and abilities
The King is one of the most well-known racers of all time, known for his seven Piston Cup wins, and being the racer chosen to sport the blue Dinoco paint job and logos. His nose cone and huge wing allow for optimum aerodynamics. Despite his age and older make, he holds his own due to his sheer experience and skill on the Piston Cup circuit. He's also able to match and even outrace younger racers than him, as he ties with the likes of Chick and McQueen. He won races and stayed towards the front of the pack right up until the end of his career.
Appearances
Bios
Car Finder Game
- "The King," Strip Weathers, has seen it all. From his humble beginnings on the Piston Cup circuit, to the glitzy sponsorship and media attention he has today. This seven time Piston Cup Champion is the winningest racecar in all of Piston Cup history. He's loved every second of his racing career, but truth be told, The King is ready for a slower pace. He's looking forward to more time with his queen, Mrs. the King.
Cars: The Videogame
- After a spectacular crash The King looked pretty beat up, but rest assured he was back on his tires in no time flat! When you've been racing and crashing as long as he has, you can handle a few scrapes and bruises.
Gallery
- For this subject's image gallery, see Strip Weathers/Gallery.
Names in other languages
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Strip Weathers
- Danish: Tom Killerem
- Hungarian: Motor Ottó
- Norwegian: Martin Sladde
- Polish: Strip Zawierucha
- Russian:
- Стрип Ветерс (transcription: Strip Veters)
- Стрип Реверс (transcription: Strip Revers)
- Swedish: Lasse Chassi
The King
- Bulgarian: Кралят (transcription: Kralyat)
- Croatian: Kralj
- Czech: Král
- Danish: Kongen
- Dutch: De King
- Estonian: Kunn
- Finnish: Kunkku
- French: Le King
- German: Der King
- Greek: Ο Αρχοντας (transcription: O Archontas)
- Italian: Maesta
- Lithuanian: Karalius
- Norwegian: Kongen
- Polish: Król
- Portuguese (Brazilian): O Rei
- Russian:
- Кинг (transcription: King)
- Король (transcription: Korol)
- Spanish: El Rey
- Swedish: Kungen
- Turkish: Kral
- Ukrainian: Король (transcription: Korol)
Strip Weathers aka "The King"
- Arabic: Strip Weathers aka "The King" الملك
- Danish: Tom Kilerem aka "Kongen"
- Dutch: Strip Weathers alias 'De King'
- Estonian: Strip Weathers ehk Kunn
- French:
- Strip Weathers alias «Le King»
- Le King, Strip Weathers
- Hungarian:
- Strip Weathers, Más Néven „The King”
- "The King" Motor Ottó
- „The King” Motor Ottó
- Italian:
- Maestà, Strip Weathers
- Strip Weathers alias "Il Re"
- Norwegian: Martin Sladde aka "Kongen"
- Polish: Strip „Pan Król” Zawierucha
- Portuguese (Brazilian): Strip Weathers "O Rei"
- Portuguese (European):
- Strip Weathers, ou "The King"
- Strip Weathers, o "King"
- Russian:
- Стрип "Кинг" Реверс (transcription: Strip "King" Revers)
- Стрип Ветерс по прозвищу "Король" (transcription: Strip Veters po prozvishchu "Korol'")
- Spanish: Strip Weathers alias "El Rey"
- Swedish: Lasse Chassi - "Kungen"
- Turkish: "Kral" Strip Weathers
Mr. The King
- Croatian: Gos. Kralj
- Czech: Pan Král
- Polish: Pan Król
Trivia
- The King's character is completely based off of Richard Petty, though despite this his name is completely different from his voice actor, Richard Petty himself for some reason unlike most of the characters who are voiced by people who are not actors or voice actors.
- The King's crash seems to be a recreation of Petty's real-life Daytona 500 accident in 1988 with the only exception that it was not caused by a collision with another driver as in the film. The bit which McQueen assists him to the finish line seems to be based on the 1976 incident, albeit by the pit crew.
- In the Danish version, The King was voiced by eight-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen.
- In the Finnish version, The King was voiced by Finnish two-time Formula One World Champion Mika Häkkinen.
- In the German version, he was voiced by Austrian three-time Formula One World Champion Niki Lauda.
- The King only has one line in Cars 3.
- During The King's crash sequence in Cars, his eyes are mistakenly blue instead of brown, as they are in the rest of the film and all other appearances.
- In Cars: The Videogame, The King's Dinoco logo resembles Rex from the Toy Story franchise as opposed to resembling a generic cartoon dinosaur.
Quotes
- "Hey, buddy. You're one gutsy racer." - Cars
- "You got more talent in one lugnut than a lotta cars has got in their whole body." - Cars
- "Thanks, Junior, appreciate it." - Cars
- "What are you doin', kid?" - Cars
- "You just gave up the Piston Cup. You know that?" - Cars
- "He's the real deal, Junior. The Hudson Hornet was my inspiration.”
- But you’re stupid.” - Cars
- "This ain't a one man deal, kid. You gotta wise up, get yourself a good crew chief and a good team." - Cars
- "Alright, you're showing some smarts there." - Cars: The Videogame
- "So you like to win, do you?" - Cars: The Videogame
- "Good comeback, Cal." - Cars 3
References
[Edit] Disney Infinity
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|---|---|---|
| Playable characters | Lightning McQueen • Mater • Holley Shiftwell • Francesco Bernoulli | |
| Non-playable characters | Luigi • Guido • Fillmore • Ramone • Flo • Finn McMissile • Chick Hicks • The King • Shu Todoroki • Carla Veloso • Pace Car | |
de:Strip Weathers es:Strip Weathers pl:Strip Zawierucha pt-br:Strip Weathers ru:Ченг Тюнинг