Random Wax: 2018 Donruss NASCAR Blaster with Relic

2018 Donruss:   Rusty Wallace is my favorite all-time driver, and also a 1X Champion (1989).  He's 12th on the all-time wins list with 55 and was top 10 in the NASCAR standings 17X.  NASCAR is at Martinsville today in the playoff's next to last race, with the final Championship race next week.

Not a big fan of the '85 retro design but it is fine here.  We have 2 Name Variations with Dale Jr and Happy Harvick.  Tony Stewart is 3X NASCAR Champion while Kevin Harvick won 1 Championship.

We have multiple photos of drivers which is nice, and we also have a Name Variation for Brad Keselowski.  He recently said he is leaving the RFK racing team, which he is a co-owner of, after this season.  He is a 1X NASCAR Champion.

I really like these car cards.  Great looking photo of 2020 NASCAR Champion Chase Elliott's car.

I like the Race Kings cards in this set with the car and the driver.  Sadly, 2X Champion Kyle Busch passed away unexpectantly earlier this year from illness while still an active driver.

This base design is solid.

One of my favorite drivers, Zane Smith as a youngster on this Next in Line insert.  We also have a Racing Relic and Masters of the Track Xplosion Parallel #/99.

Joey Logano's classic Pennzoil look.  He's a 3X NASCAR champion.

Martin Truex Jr, the 2017 NASCAR Champion.  Rated Rookie William Byron who is in the playoffs this year.

And retired greats.  Bobby Labonte won the NASCAR Championship in 2000.  His brother Terry Labonte won 2 Championships.  Fun box of cards.  Can't wait for these final 2 races of this season.

BREAKDOWN:
60 – Total Cards
15 – Retro 1985
8 – Race Kings
6 - Cars
6 – Legends
5 – Nickname Variation
2 – Rated Rookie
1 - Classics
1 – Next in Line
1 – Racing Relics
1 – Master of the Track
1 – Xplosion Parallel #/99
1 – Red Foil Parallel #/299

Random Wax: 2018 Donruss NASCAR Blaster

 2018 Donruss NASCAR: The 2022 NASCAR season starts today so this blaster seems like a great way to celebrate.  Not sure where I picked this up last March but I'm glad I did.  This is always a fun product and my 2022 hobby box is on order.  This blaster yielded a nice Cracked Ice Kevin Harvick #/999.  The Daytona 500 starts today at 2:30 Eastern.

I like this design pretty well.  I wouldn't mind the driver's car number in a corner of the card though.

These '85 Retro cards show off the base Kevin Harvick and his nickname variation.  Not a fan of the design but I do like the nickname variations.

I like car photos.  This is how we see these guys most of the time and it's also part of why we root for some of these guys.  The sponsor or make of the car go a long ways for some when it comes to jumping on a driver's bandwagon.  Or you may just buy the diecast because of one of those reasons.

To veterans, to legends to young drivers the set does a good job getting all the drivers we love in the set.  Jeff Gordon is back in sets and one reason I'm looking forward to this year's set.

Does that Derrike Cope scream 80s or what?  That Newman was the relic in my blaster.  Newman was in a horrible crash at Daytona last year but somehow was out of hospital within a few days.  It really was a scary watch especially when it was obvious there was a problem.  I always like the Race Kings/Queens set and this design was a good offering. 

Hamlin won that Daytona race that featured the Newman crash.  Fun box of cards.  Let's go racing boys!

BREAKDOWN:
60 – Total Cards
13 – Retro 1985
8 – Race Kings/Queens
7 – Cars
7 - Legends
4 – Nickname
2 – Studio
1 - Classics
1 – Racing Relic
1 – Rated Rookie
1 – Cracked Ice #/999

2018 Donruss NASCAR Race Kings-Queens Set

I'm a Diamond Kings/Court Kings/Race Kings kind of a guy so the opportunity to pick up these 2018 Donruss NASCAR Race Kings-Queens set on eBay for cheap was a no brainer.  I thought they did a good job with the 2018 set though it really isn't that different from the 2017 offering.  Kyle Larson is a young driver I like who has finished in the top 10 of the season standings three seasons in a row.  He is 12th going into today's race at Bristol.  

Of course all the heavy hitters are represented including these now retired greats of the sport.

Kevin Harvick is a perennial contender for the cup title and is currently 3rd in the standings.  I've had luck of late finding complete subsets or insert sets on eBay for decent prices.  This one ran me just under $6 shipped and is definitely better than chasing individual cards.

  

This set contained 25 total cards.  Martin Truex Jr. (below) was the reigning champion and I'm a bit surprised he wasn't the #1 card in the set.  Seems like a good idea and they could actually order them by finish in the previous season. 

Danica Patrick was of course afforded the Race Queens title for her card.  The 2019 Race Kings design is drastically different and will also have retired greats.  Can't wait to see those in hand. 

BREAKDOWN:

25 - Total Cards

2018 Donruss NASCAR

This is my first look at the 2018 Donruss NASCAR cards.  This is one of those Dollar General $1 packs that contains four cards but I can't say no to.  Not much bang for my buck but I haven't seen these around yet.  The Martin Truex Jr. Race Kings was a great pull.  He was the NASCAR champion last year and I like him as a driver.  He is currently third in this year's standings.  The base card of Eric Jones shows more color than last year's set which is a nice change.   The Mark Martin legends card isn't bad though a bit more bland.  The '85 Donruss was never a favorite design of mine so the Corey Lajoie card wasn't a huge plus for me.  I could probably do without those cards but I know the retro looks are a big deal in these sets.  Overall a solid pack with the current circuit champ and a sold retired great.  The solid base card design and nice look on the Race Kings cards are definite wins for me.  I definitely see myself picking up more of these cards.

BREAKDOWN:

4 - Total Cards

1 - Race Kings

1 - Legends

1 - Retro '85