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Working pick
2010 Topps UFC Knockout #120 Jose Aldo — front
#120
Rookie card guide

José Aldo
Rookie Card

Which card is actually the rookie, how to tell it, and what gets mistaken for it.

  • Working pick2010 Topps UFC Knockout #120
  • SubjectJose Aldo
  • Year2010
  • ManufacturerTopps
  • ConfidenceProbable
  • Print runUnknown — not estimated
High confidence×1Probable×1Uncertain×1View sources & research

Why this is the working pick

TCDB flags two 2010 cards as Aldo rookies: Topps UFC Knockout #120 and Leaf MMA #83. FightCardboard's working pick is the Topps card because it is UFC-licensed and comes from Topps' first high-end UFC product (Cardboard Connection). eBay sellers routinely list #120 and its Gold /288 parallel as 'Rookie RC'. Leaf #83 came out first (September 2010 vs December 2010), so it has a real claim to be his first card. Topps' own Ripped blog instead names 2011 Finest UFC #95 as his rookie, calling it his first appearance as a UFC fighter.

Aldo's first licensed UFC card, in Topps' first high-end UFC product, released in December 2010 during the WEC–UFC merger. It is the base card behind a well-structured numbered parallel rainbow.

The dispute

TCDB flags both 2010 Topps UFC Knockout #120 and 2010 Leaf MMA #83 as RC. Topps Ripped names 2011 Finest UFC #95 as the rookie. SportsCardsPro does not mark #120 or #83 as rookie cards. Leaf #83 was released first.

Commonly misidentified

Autographs get sold as rookies: eBay listings title the 2010 Leaf MMA AU-JA1 autograph 'RC Auto … Rookie 1st Autograph', but it is a rookie-year autograph, not an RC-flagged card; the 2010 Topps UFC Knockout A-JA /188 autograph is likewise a rookie-year signature, not the RC. Leaf's Champions (CH-JA1) and National Pride (NP-JA1) autographs are different cards from AU-JA1.

Identifying it

  • Card #120 of 150 in 2010 Topps UFC Knockout
  • Released December 2010 (Cardboard Connection)
  • Base card is unnumbered; parallels are serial-numbered

What gets mistaken for it

What you'll readWhat's true
2010 Leaf MMA #83 Jose Aldo is the rookie.Also RC-flagged on TCDB and released earlier (Sept 22, 2010), so it has a genuine rookie claim; FightCardboard's working pick is the Topps card because it is UFC-licensed and #83 is not.
2011 Finest UFC #95 Jose Aldo is the rookie.Topps Ripped calls it his rookie, but TCDB does not flag it RC and it comes a year after two RC-flagged 2010 cards.

Parallels

Base
—
Unnumbered
Silver
/188
Probable
Gold
/288
High confidence
Green
/88
Probable
Red
/8
Probable
Octagon Mat
1/1
Probable

Grading & population

Population figures will be taken directly from the grading companies and dated when they are. None are shown yet.

Sources & research High confidence×1Probable×1Uncertain×1

Every factual claim on this page, the evidence behind it, and an honest confidence level. Where sources disagree the disagreement is kept, not quietly resolved.

Probable

José Aldo's rookie card: 2010 Topps UFC Knockout #120 — Jose Aldo.

TCDB flags two 2010 cards as Aldo rookies: Topps UFC Knockout #120 and Leaf MMA #83. FightCardboard's working pick is the Topps card because it is UFC-licensed and comes from Topps' first high-end UFC product (Cardboard Connection). eBay sellers routinely list #120 and its Gold /288 parallel as 'Rookie RC'. Leaf #83 came out first (September 2010 vs December 2010), so it has a real claim to be his first card. Topps' own Ripped blog instead names 2011 Finest UFC #95 as his rookie, calling it his first appearance as a UFC fighter. DISPUTE: TCDB flags both 2010 Topps UFC Knockout #120 and 2010 Leaf MMA #83 as RC. Topps Ripped names 2011 Finest UFC #95 as the rookie. SportsCardsPro does not mark #120 or #83 as rookie cards. Leaf #83 was released first.

High confidence

2010 Topps UFC Knockout #120 — Jose Aldo.

Uncertain

Disputed detail on 2010 Topps UFC Knockout #120.

Rookie status disputed: TCDB flags this card and 2010 Leaf MMA #83 as RC, Topps Ripped names 2011 Finest UFC #95 as his rookie, and SportsCardsPro marks none of them. #120 is FightCardboard's working pick.

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