Celebrating the state’s long history of producing some of the country’s finest cheese, the CPC will feature 4 culinary events to showcase California cheese, with a Grand Prize of a trip to International Competition in 2027! There will also be a slew of Pizza Athletic categories demonstrating the dexterity and agility needed in the kitchen on a busy night.

Event sponsor REAL California Milk will provide any assistance needed in locating or obtaining any cheese found on the REAL California Milk official website. Thank you to our oven sponsor Marra Forni and the rest of our event sponsors, MFG Tray, Grain Craft, GI Metal &The Pizza Tomorrow Summit.

Culinary categories will include:

NON-TRADITIONAL: Must be 14″-16″, round, yield 6 pieces, not made in a pan, and feature at least 1 cheese produced in California (verification will be required). Competitors may use creative, gourmet, and non-traditional ingredients, sauces, cheeses, and finishing techniques. Winner of this category will receive the grand prize of a trip to compete in international competition in 2027, courtesy of the USPT & their Gold Sponsor, REAL California Milk.

PIZZA in the PAN: Must yield at least 6 pieces. Competitors may prepare any style of pan pizza, including Detroit, Sicilian, Grandma, Roman or other pan-baked variations, using creative toppings, sauces, cheeses and finishing techniques. Competitors will have 30 minutes from first touch to hands off. All parbaking and pan preparation must be performed & timed in view of competition management. That time will be deducted from overall make time allowed; no parbaked crusts or pre-baked pizza components may be brought into the competition. Judges will evaluate each pizza on craftsmanship, flavor, bake quality, balance, appearance and overall execution.

GLUTEN-FREE: Must yield 6 pieces from a single pizza. All doughs, flours, sauces, toppings, seasonings, and finishing ingredients must be verified gluten-free. Competitors must follow strict gluten-free handling and cross-contamination prevention procedures throughout the competition. Competitors may make any style of gluten-free pizza that can be prepared onsite. Winner of this category will receive special recognition and prizes courtesy of the USPT & their Gold Sponsor, REAL California Milk.

THE REAL CALIFORNIA 3-CHEESE CHALLENGE: Pizza must contain EXACTLY 3 cheeses and all cheeses must be produced with Real California Milk. Any cheese included in any other part of your recipe counts towards the total. Example, if you have cheese in your sauce, that counts as 1, and so on. Pizzas must yield at least 6 pieces. Competitors may use additional ingredients and any sauce desired. Competitors must submit a full recipe by . You must submit the California cheeses you will be using when you register. Event sponsor REAL California Milk will provide any assistance needed in locating or obtaining any cheese found on the REAL California Milk official website.

Athletic Pizza Events will include:

Individual Freestyle Acrobatics: Spin it to win it! The victor of this event earns a trip (flight + room) to Orlando Oct. 25-27, 2026 to compete for a the grand prize of a ticket to compete in an international pizza competition in 2027.

Largest Dough Stretch: Competitors will have 5 minutes to stretch out one 18 oz. dough ball as large as possible. No holes larger than a dimer will be permitted.

Fastest Pie Maker: Competitor will stretch out five 10 oz. dough balls as fast as possible to cover 10″ screens. Dough must cover the entire screen to be counted.

Fastest Box Folder: Competitor will fold five  14″ boxes as fast as possible. Best time wins.