By Michael Moore, PWTorch Collectibles specialist

In Brief: The Ultimate Warrior’s stunning death has sparked interest in his autographed trading cards from Panini.

Card Show Tuesday #21: Ultimate Warrior Donruss Autographs

Few wrestlers have ever connected with young fans the way the Ultimate Warrior did. Fans who were children and teenagers in the late-1980s and early-1990s look back fondly on Warrior’s career. To many, he is still a larger-than-life superhero from their childhood.

The Warrior’s fans during his peak years are all grown up, but they’re still kids at heart. Today many of them are 20-somethings and 30-somethings who are investing in memories from their formative years, collecting action figures, wrestling magazines, and trading cards.

Since the Warrior’s stunning death on April 8, his certified autographed trading cards have been the hottest collectibles among wrestling fans. In some cases, sale prices have quadrupled compared to the first few months of 2014.

Warrior never signed for any WWE trading card sets, but he did sign cards (or, at least, stickers that were affixed to cards) for Donruss (now Panini America) in 2007. His autograph appeared in three Panini products: 2007 Americana, 2008 Celebrity Cuts and 2008 Sports Legends. There are several versions of each card, serial numbered from 5 to 250.

From January 1 through April 5, only four Warrior autographs from Donruss sold on eBay. Of those, the highest completed listing ended at $82 for a 2007 Americana Private Signings Autograph serial numbered to 50.




At least 16 different Warrior autographs from Donruss sold from April 8-12. This show’s not only collectors’ interest in the Warrior’s autograph since his death, but also sellers’s desires to profit from the Warrior’s death. Collectors and sellers who had been sitting on Warrior autographs listed them quickly on eBay. That practice is fiercely debated whenever an athlete, celebrity of wrestler passes away. In the end, it’s up to each collector to form his own opinion on the matter.

Since April 8, the lowest completed eBay listing was $102.51, for a 2008 Sports Legends autograph serial numbered to 128. The highest completed listing was $298.99 for a 2007 Americana Private Signings. The seller did not include the serial numbering in the auction title or description.

Buying an autograph of a wrestler immediately after his death can be tricky, not to mention costly. On one hand, collectors know the supply is limited. Many Warrior autographs will find their way into personal collections and won’t be listed again, so some collectors may want to buy now. However, even though the supply may dry up, it’s hard to see the Warrior autographs selling for higher prices that they are right now, at least in the immediate future. If you wait a few weeks, you might be able to find one cheaper.

The Warrior was one of the marketable characters in wrestling history, with his likeness also appearing on action figures, posters, t-shirts, magazines, and other collectibles. Friday’s collectibles column will look at some other Warrior items that are popular with collectors.




PWTorch Collectibles Specialist Michael Moore can be reached at michaelmoorewriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @MmooreWriter .

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