A Review Of 2023 Donruss UFC, The Sophomore Release Of The Product

With a roster full of established fighters and plenty of chase pieces, 2023 Donruss UFC offers something for everyone. The latest mixed martial arts trading card set was released June 9th.

2023 Donruss UFC basics

After an initial release in 2022, the popular Donruss brand has come back for round 2 with UFC cards. With Panini lacking licenses for the major sports, it seems likely it will continue to invest heavily into UFC which has been on an upward trend for years now.

The base set has a heavy focus on established fighters, but there are opportunities to find rookies.

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The base card has a very busy look, with lots of 3D shapes implemented. It is not a very appealing design to say the least. Unfortunately, these 3D elements made it into some inserts such as Rated Rookie. Overall, the blocky design tends to draw attention away from the athletes.

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2023 Donruss UFC Release Formats

Just like last year, Panini opted for a jumbo-style format for Donruss UFC’s hobby boxes. Each box will include:

• 30 cards per pack
• 10 packs per box
• 10 boxes per case

With a total of 300 cards per box, here’s what collectors can expect in each:

• 1 Autograph
• 1 Memorabilia Card
• 60 Inserts or Parallels

2023 Donruss UFC Checklist

The full checklist for 2023 Donruss UFC is quite extensive, with 225 cards and 14 parallels laying the foundation for the base set. Accompanying the base set are 3 autograph sets, 2 relic sets, and 8 other inserts.

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This base set includes 20 Rated Rookies and 5 Authority of the Octagon cards.

• Orange Laser Holo
• Pink Laser Holo
• Purple Flood
• Purple Press Proof
• Silver Press Proof
• Teal Press Proof
• Holo Laser /99
• Purple Laser Holo /99
• Red Laser Holo /75
• Blue Laser Holo /49
• 30th Anniversary Holo /30
• Teal Laser Holo /25
• Gold Laser Holo /10
• Black Laser Holo 1/1

2023 Donruss UFC Autographs

Three autograph sets with a combined total of 105 cards makeup Donruss UFC’s signature offerings.

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Authority of the Octagon Signatures

5 UFC referees make up this set with 7 parallels.

• Orange Laser Holo
• Holo Laser /99
• Red Laser Holo /49
• Blue Laser Holo /25
• Purple Laser Holo /15
• Gold Laser Holo /10
• Black Laser Holo 1/1

Rated Rookies Signatures

Rated Rookies consists of 18 rookies with the same 7 parallels as Authority of the Octagon.

• Orange Laser Holo
• Holo Laser /99
• Red Laser Holo /49
• Blue Laser Holo /25
• Purple Laser Holo /15
• Gold Laser Holo /10
• Black Laser Holo 1/1

Signature Series

Most autographs are in this set made up of 82 cards. A wide range are fighters are represented here, including big names like Khabib Nurmagomedov and Daniel Cormier.

• Purple Flood
• Purple Laser Holo /15
• Gold /10
• Black 1/1
• Pink Laser Holo 1/1

2023 Donruss UFC Memorabilia

This year’s edition of Donruss UFC has a total roster of 99 relic cards, split between Octagon Royalty and Octagon Canvas Materials.

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Octagon Canvas Materials

Consisting of 40 cards, this set includes pieces of the Octagon Canvas.

Octagon Royalty

Octagon Royalty is home to the only relic parallel, Prime. It has a roster of 59 cards, with four cards not receiving a Prime parallel. These are Michael Chiesa, Jessica Andrade, Francis Ngannou, and Robert Whittaker.

• Prime /10

2023 Donruss UFC Inserts

The standard inserts come to an even 110 cards split among 8 sets.

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Crunch Time

Crunch Time shows off athletes as if the card is a cereal box. On the back of each card is a nutritional information box containing fighters’ height and weight, as well as a crossword puzzle.

• Orange Laser Holo
• Silver Press Proof
• Purple Laser Holo /99
• Gold Press Proof /10
• Black Press Proof 1/1

Dominators

Some of the most dominant fighters the Octagon has seen are highlighted in this 10-card set.

• Orange Laser Holo
• Silver Press Proof
• Purple Laser Holo /99
• Gold Press Proof /10
• Black Press Proof 1/1

Fantasy Matchups

Although these fights have not and may never happen, it’s still fun to imagine these matchups.

• Orange Laser Holo
• Silver Press Proof
• Purple Laser Holo /99
• Gold Press Proof /10
• Black Press Proof 1/1

Octagon Marvels

Marvels is a 20-card insert with 5 parallels that features some big names like Conor McGregor and Jon Jones.

• Orange Laser Holo
• Silver Press Proof
• Purple Laser Holo /99
• Gold Press Proof /10
• Black Press Proof 1/1

Past and Present

One of the rarest sets in the whole release is Past and Present. These cards utilize lenticular technology to show older pictures of fighters alongside how they look in 2023.

Retro Series

The Retro Series is made up of 10 cards and 5 parallels. Some of the athletes featured include Anderson Silva and Brock Lesnar.

• Orange Laser Holo
• Silver Press Proof
• Purple Laser Holo /99
• Gold Press Proof /10
• Black Press Proof 1/1

Stare Masters

New to this year’s release is Stare Masters. Every card has a close-up of a fighter starting straight ahead.

• Orange Laser Holo
• Silver Press Proof
• Purple Laser Holo /99
• Gold Press Proof /10
• Black Press Proof 1/1

The Untouchables

Another new set is The Untouchables, made up of 20 cards with no parallels.

Final thoughts on Donruss UFC 2023

2023 Donruss UFC should be an appealing set for collectors interested in chase pieces like the Past and Present insert, which uses Lenticular technology to create a unique card product.

There are also plenty of autographs for both investors and fans of the fighters. With a significant focus on the rarer cards in the product, it’s odd that only one autograph is expected in a box of 300 cards. It’ll be interesting if Panini is able to offer enough interesting cards to make the huge hobby box worth it.

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Further reading

Interested in other Cardlines write-ups on combat sports? Check out some of the pieces below.

• 2022 Panini Prizm UFC
• 2023 Panini Prizm UFC
• 2022 Donruss UFC