2002 Finest Xfractor Tom Brady 1/20 #50 BGS 9.5 GEM MINT

In Week 10 of the 2001 NFL season, the St. Louis Rams traveled to Gillette Stadium and picked up a victory over Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. Over the next few months, the Patriots reeled off eight straight wins on the way to Super Bowl XXXVI. Who was awaiting them in New Orleans? Those same formative St. Louis Rams—and the Greatest Show on Turf was an overwhelming favorite to win its second title in three seasons. Brady, however, efficiently led his offense, and his collected play combined with a stellar defensive effort to write the first chapter of the Patriots’ dynasty. Brady was at his best late in the fourth quarter, when he engineered a 53-yard drive that resulted in the game-deciding field goal and helped him pick up his first of five Super Bowl MVP awards. His first Super Bowl appearance is summarized on the back of his 2002 Finest card, and one collector will write a new chapter in their collection after winning this BGS 9.5 example of the scarce /20 Xfractor parallel in this week’s auction. Topps did plenty of experimenting with the Finest brand, at times using tiered base sets, Embossed cards, No-Protector Refractors, and Gold Refractors in sets between 1996 and 2000 before eliminating parallels the following year. Parallels made a triumphant return in 2002, with base Refractors coming back for the first time since ‘99, Gold Refractors returning after a one-year hiatus, and the introduction of Xfractors. Cards graced with the hyper-plaid technology were found once every 3,810 packs in Xfractor Hot Boxes, and this bookend 1/20 example of Brady’s first Finest Xfractor is bound to be a hot commodity throughout the week.