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The box: 2017 Donruss NASCAR cards (hobby box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
Packs per box: 24
Cards per pack: 10
Cards in this box: 238
Set completion:
111 of 189 (59 percent)
Duplicates: 96
Triplicates: 9
Notables on base cards – Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick, Austin Dillon, Carl Edwards, Chase Elliott, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Danica Patrick, Brad Keselowski & more.
Insert/short-print cards: 32 (all in gallery below)
Base card variation (1) – Cousin Carl (Edwards)
Variations short-prints (1) – Gentleman Ned (Jarrett)
Race Kings (4) – Jamie McMurray, Trevor Bayne, Bobby Labonte, Tony Stewart
Rated Rookies (1) – Garrett Smithy
1984 Donruss (5) – Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jimmie Johnson, Rusty Wallace, Kasey Kahne, Bobby Labonte
Green parallel (1) – Michael Annett (/199)
Blue parallel (1) – Brad Keselowski (/299)
Gold parallel (1) – John Hunter Nemechek (/499)
Gold Rated Rookies parallel (1) – Cameron Hayley (/499)
Blue 1984 Donruss parallel (1) – Denny Hamlin (/299)
Gold Press Proof (1) – Kate Dallenbach (/99)
Black Artist Proof (1) – Greg Biffle (/25)
Black Artist Proof 1984 Donruss (1) – Mark Martin (/25)
Classics (2) – Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenneth
Classics Cracked Ice (1) – Michael Waltrip (/999)
Call to the Hall (1) – Junior Johnson
Pole Position (1) – Austin Dillon
Pole Position Cracked Ice (1) – Kyle Busch (/999)
Speed (1) – Danica Patrick
Speed Cracked Ice (1) – Trevor Bayne (/999)
Track Masters (1) – Joey Logano
Top Tier (1) – Denny Hamlin
Top Tier Cracked Ice (1) – Jimmie Johnson (/999)
Cut to the Chase (1) – Joey Logano
Autographs/Memorabilia: 1
Signature Series (1) – William Byron
Rubber Relics (2) – Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick
What’s Buzz-worthy: The first NASCAR set of the sophomore season of Panini America’s foray into the sport is one that’s impressive and fun and yet confusing all at the same time. Like other Donruss-branded releases in recent years, it’s got short-printed subsets throughout the set that ultimately feel like inserts. There are shorted Race Kings to start the set then even shorter Rated Rookies. Then you have non-shorted driver cards, pit crew and dual-car subsets capped by a subset of Cup Chase drivers, then a set of 1984 Donruss-designed short-prints thrown in before it’s capped by another batch of short-printed base cards that reverts back to the standard set design. Those cards that carry nicknames or alternate names like variations we have seen in Donruss this year are called Variations on the company’s checklist — but are not actually variations. Compounding that oddity? There are different base cards that so have variations with the same type of variation as the Variations cards that are variations but are not Variations. (Got that? Good, because each of them — Variation or variation — also has parallels.) This approach may keep some people ripping but it’s something that would not make me want to build a master set. All that said, this is a fun one to simply rip and watch the variety of inserts, numbered cards and hits add up. It delivers so much that it’s fun, though getting so many extra base cards shows that perhaps the configuration of either the wax format or the set itself could be changed or simplified. This was a fun and satisfying rip otherwise.
Product Grade: B+
Box Grade: A
Fun Grade: A
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