Buzz Break: 2022 Panini WWE NXT wrestling cards (hobby box)

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and break down the results here. Like this and want to see more -- or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2022 Panini WWE NXT wrestling cards (hobby box)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available) 

Keep reading to see a full breakdown and gallery for this one.

Packs per box: 24
Cards per pack: 8
Cards in this box: 192
Base set completion: 
124 of 125 (99 percent)
Duplicates: 42

Notables on base cards – Triple H, Bianca Belair, Drew McIntyre, Bayley, Seth Rollins, Charlotte Flair, Big E, Finn Balor, Alexa Bliss, Becky Lynch, Asuka, Shunsuke Nakamura, Rhea Ripley, Roman Reigns, Gigi Dolin, Io Shirai, Wendy Choo, Indi Hartwell, Mandy Rose, Johnny Saint (RC, no logo)

Rookie cards (85 total; 60 unique) – Notables include Solo Sikoa, Bron Breakker, Nikkita Lyons, Cora Jade, Tiffany Stratton, Carmelo Hayes, Grayson Waller, Joe Gacy, Von Wagner, Xyon Quinn, Andre Chase, Lash Legend, Roxanne Perez, Jacy Jayne, Ivy Nile, Fallon Henley, Xia Brookside

Inserts: 24 (all in gallery below with some base)
NXT Gold (4) – Io Shirai, Raquel Rodriguez, Ciampa, Tyler Bate
All-time NXT Highlights (3) – Seth Rollins, Pete Dunne, Asuka
2021 NXT Highlights (7) – Finn Balor, L.A. Knight, Kushida, Raquel Rodriguez, Roderick Strong, Imperium
Silver 2021 NXT Highlights (1) – Meiko Satomura
Silver (5) – Io Shirai, Andre Chase, Jordan Devlin, Corey Graves, Nathan Frazer
Blue (2) – Dani Luna, Odyssey Jones (/149)
Red (1) – Roxanne Perez (/199)
Purple (1) – Bianca Belair (/99)

Autographs/Memorabilia: 2
NXT Memorabilia (1) – Roderick Strong
Gold NXT Memorabilia Signatures (1) – Gunther (/10)

What's Buzz-worthy: Two thoughts ... had NXT stars not appeared on the checklists of the first three Panini America releases, this one would be a monster -- and yet at the same time there's a lot to like here even though there's no razzle-dazzle Revolution stock or Optichrome to be found here. What is here? A meaty dose of Rookie Cards -- 60 on the checklist (61 if you include UK star Johnny Saint on his first WWE cards) -- and a photography showcase with on-card autos and plenty of parallels for a budget price. I landed a rare auto-mem card of a notable young guy here so no on-card ink for me (the on-card autos might be the best-design cards and best photos of the bunch) but I think I still got a healthy dose of what this one is about. I was a mere Kevin Owens base card short of the set and I got a parallel of a key young name, too, to help things out here with a lot of extra RCs to add to grading potential for those I like. (Unfortunately, the stock type can have its issues to watch for but it's generally cleaner than I expected.) The parallels aren't as perhaps as plentiful or colorful as I had hoped for -- some parallels are quite colorful of you find them -- but this one is loaded with past and present talent for WWE's developmental program. This one is loaded with stars who haven't had cards before -- or had no cards at all before Panini America took over the license this year -- and that's partly due to the influx of new names for NXT 2.0 (now back to just NXT), NXT UK and getting caught up on production cycles post-COVID. (Topps' NXT releases had a lot of delays so checklists didn't have as many new names.) All in all, I liked this one more than I had expected so I will rip more -- and there should be a retail element here based on box side panels noting hobby-exclusive parallels here -- though I'll probably rip hobby with the guaranteed ink until we know more on that front. (NXT only went retail once under Topps.) This one has a lot to chew on and it's really Panini's first traditional-stock release of the year ... perhaps it could set the stage for some traditional, affordable releases for collectors not into solely chrome stuff to rip? We'll see. I'll offer more thoughts here when I do more.

Product Grade: A 
Box Grade: A+ (rare hit of a top young star)
Fun Grade: B+ (needs more parallels ... some minor stock issues but better than previous NXT stock)

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