Former NFL linebacker Martinez joins The Chase

By David Yarger

Co-Host The Chase

Happy Friday everybody! Another episode of The Chase is in the books and what an episode it was. The crew welcomed former NFL linebacker and bigtime Pokémon collector Blake Martinez on to the show. Martinez, if you didn’t know, recently sold a rare Pokémon card that became the second most expensive Pokémon card of all time. 

The card was a 1998 Japanese Pokémon Pikachu Illustrator card graded a 9.5 by CGC. The card is a rare CoroCoro Comics card that came from an illustration contest. 

Martinez said he started around the age of 6 collecting and ripping Pokémon cards. He said he would finish chores and then go to the store and get any packs he could get his hands on. As he grew up, though, Martinez said he got more into Gameboy games and stored the cards away in storage. 

Martinez then got back into the hobby a few years back and when he asked his mother where his old cards went, she said she had gotten rid of them. 

From there, Martinez hopped back into the hobby and discovered box breaks, where he mentioned he got hooked back into collecting. 

Martinez is the creator of Blake’s Breaks and said he will stay up late breaking cards. He added that he’s played in an NFL game before, came home and got right to streaming. Additionally, he felt when he’d watch other breakers, it was very similar to watching film from his NFL days – getting to know what other people are doing and such. 

“We kind of took a shotgun approach and hired about 10 people and brought them on. Some things worked out, some things didn’t work out and it’s been a crazy journey,” Martinez said. 

He then credited his team for helping him balance his time between football and the hobby. 

Martinez added that even while he played football, he was incredibly excited any time he got the chance to break. 

“I found my passion on top of what is so much fun to do. Like I’m opening kids’ cards. It’s just so much fun and anybody that talks to me is like ‘How do you have so much energy?’ And I’m like I’m opening literal kids cards for a living. That’s like the greatest thing ever,” he said. 

Martinez added that the Illustrator transaction was one of the craziest stories he’s been a part of. He said he had to wire a ton of money to someone he’d never met – meaning he had to trust that this wasn’t a scam. Once the money was received, the seller took a bullet train to drop off the card in Osaka, Japan. As all that is happening, Martinez said he was trying to figure out how to get the card shipped, which eventually was FedEx two-day shipping. The card ended up getting held for two weeks in Missouri, leading to Martinez blowing up the phone lines of FedEx to get the card released. After he finally secured the card, he instantly got it graded and put it up for auction on Goldin.co. 

Moving forward, a lot of athletes of late have come out and noted they are collectors. Martinez said a few of his past teammates became intrigued with collecting once they saw him ripping Pokémon such as Saquon Barkley, Cassius Marsh, Leonard Williams, Sterling Shepard and more. 

To see the whole interview with Martinez, head to the YouTube replay here!

Additionally, to see more content from Martinez, head to his WhatNot.

Also on The Chase …

Following the interview with Martinez, the crew ripped not one, but two boxes of Upper Deck Artifacts Hockey. The two autos included Charlie Coyle of the Bruins and Isac Lundestrom of the Ducks. There were also multiple numbered cards, two patch cards, as well as rookies such Owen Power and Jack Quinn. 

To win the cards, comment on the YouTube replay (not my idea) what your go to crying in the car song is. Yes, I know that is strange, but all the answers are strange on Fridays. 

A winner will be announced on Monday’s episode of The Chase. 

For more information on everything Dave & Adam’s Card World related, visit dacardworld.com or visit all the social media platforms here.