By Michael Moore, PWTorch Collectibles specialist

In Brief: Topps’s latest WWE dog tag offering features unique wrestling memorabilia.

Topps has been producing WWE dog tags since about 2007, throwing in new wrinkles to catch collectors’s attention with each new set.

Topps introduced relic tags in 2010, which featured a picture of a wrestler on the front and a swatch from a t-shirt worn by that wrestler on the back. In 2013 Topps added autographs to the mix by including tags signed by A.J. Lee, Daniel Bryan, Kane, and others.

For its 2015 WWE Dog Tags Ringside Relic Edition, Topps has brought back gold base tag parallels and also added gold relic parallels, many of which feature prime, multi-colored pieces of shirts worn by WWE wrestlers.

Each pack contains one dog tag and a matching trading card. Packs are $2.99 each, and most gravity feed retail boxes contain 24 individual packs. There are 30 base tags of current stars like Brock Lesnar, Seth Rollins, John Cena, and Daniel Bryan, along with veterans like Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, and Ric Flair. The only Diva in the 30-tag set is A.J. Lee. Gold parallels are inserted 1:117 packs.




There are at least 16 different relic tags, inserted 1:24 packs. Relic tags include a swatch of a t-shirt from wrestlers like Roman Reigns, Edge, Bray Wyatt, Randy Orton, and more. Gold relic tags are incredibly difficult to pull, inserted at a rate of 1:874 packs. Some collectors have suggested that there is only 25 of each gold relic tag, but Topps has not confirmed this.




Topps released the 2015 WWE Dog Tags set just as it was also putting out its 2015 Topps WWE trading card set, so these tags may have slipped by some collectors. Dog tags don’t have the same fan base as traditional trading cards, so don’t expect a huge resale value on them. That’s good for buyers, as you can probably find a tag of your favorite wrestler to hang from your desk at a pretty low price online.

There are super collectors of certain wrestlers, however, and this can drive up some sale prices. Unsurprisingly, A.J. Lee's tag is the hottest item in the set. Her base tag usually sells for $8-10, while most wrestlers’ base tags can be found for $3 or less. Sales of her gold tag have been incredibly volatile, selling anywhere from $20 to $50.

Many collectors’s biggest criticism of Topps’ wrestling relics is that most cards feature a plain one-color swatch of shirt. If you’re a collector of unique looking pieces, keep an eye out for gold relic tags on sites like eBay. Topps has fit some really cool multi-colored pieces into the gold tags, and sale prices have been relatively low. A four-color Cesaro gold relic tag recently sold for just $10, and a multi-colored Bray Wyatt sold for just over $15.

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

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