Caitlin Clark's records in the card market are threatening to rival the feats of her historic on-court career.
Panini released the Caitlin Clark Rookie of the Year Panini Instant Collection on Friday, yielding yet another record card sale for the phenom, as her Blue Viper 1/1 Autograph card sold for $97,212, the sixth-most expensive card ever for a female athlete.
The top five are all held by Serena Williams, with the record being a $266k sale in May 2022.
But it was Clark's $9.99 base card issued by Panini and available until Wednesday that might provide an even more impressive record.
Clark cards from the collection outsold every other athlete's Panini Instant cards, male or female, a representative from Panini confirmed to cllct.
Past athletes to appear in Panini Instant include Lionel Messi, Patrick Mahomes and Luka Dončić. Clark's recent record sale is the second-highest price paid for a Panini Instant card, behind only a 2022 Panini Instant FIFA WC Qatar Black Lionel Messi Autographed 1/1 (PSA 9 / Auto 10), which sold for $126,000 in January.
Panini signed Clark to an exclusive multi-year deal for memorabilia and trading cards earlier this year, and the Indiana Fever star has since become a mainstay in Panini products, including in the Panini Instant WNBA Draft release and a 50-card set of her career highlights.
The demand shows no sign of subsiding, especially when looking at the secondary market, which has already seen a card from Friday's release, Clark's autographed jungle /25, sell for $5,000 (providing the seller with a quick flip after purchasing the card for $2,999.99).
These drops have thrived, particularly in the absence of major and more traditional releases, three of which Panini plans to roll out in the next few months: Origins, Select and the company's flagship product, Prizm.
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.