CGC Keeps Breaking Records: CGC-certified Rayquaza Gold Star Realizes More Than $1 Million

The seven-figure hits just keep coming for CGC in 2026! Since January, several Pokémon cards have shattered records by realizing more than $1 million in auctions and private sales. Highlights including two Pokémon Illustrator promos that realized $2 million and $1.7 million in February and June, respectively, as well as an “Ivy” Pikachu variant that sold for $3.3 million in August, soon to be followed by another example that sold for $1.3 million.

Now, another CGC-certified Pokémon card joins the ranks: a Rayquaza Gold Star, Pokémon (2005) EX Deoxys Holo graded CGC Pristine 10 that realized $1,020,000 in a Fanatics Collect Premier Auction that ended on August 28, 2026.

A Rayquaza Gold Star, Pokémon (2005) EX Deoxys Holo graded CGC Pristine 10. Click images to enlarge.

According to the CGC Cards Population Report, this is the only example of Rayquaza Gold Star graded CGC Pristine 10, and, according to Fanatics Collect, it is also the only Pristine 10 example recorded by any third-party grading company as of August 2026. Additionally, this CGC-certified Rayquaza Gold Star now holds the record for highest price of any TCG card on Fanatics Collect’s auction platform!

Introduced in EX Deoxys in 2004, Rayquaza Gold Star is an extremely rare card that shows off the legendary serpent in its “shiny” black-and-gold colors, complete with catastrophic attacks that destroyed opponents’ Pokémon ex cards (which were, at the time, the most powerful cards in the game). Gold Star cards only had a pull rate of one per every two booster boxes, or one in every 64 packs, making this one of the most sought-after cards in the entire TCG, right alongside the likes of Base Set Charizard and Umbreon ex.

“Even as summer comes to a close, CGC’s streak of record-breaking TCGs and sports cards can’t be stopped,” said Matt Quinn, Vice President of CGC Cards. “As more and more submitters trust CGC to authenticate and certify some of their most treasured rarities, so too do collectors and dealers trust that CGC will help them get the most value out of their collections.”

About CGC

Since revolutionizing comic book grading in 2000, CGC has grown to include certification services for a vast variety of pop culture collectibles. These divisions include CGC Cards, CGC Video Games, and CGC Home Video. CGC Cards provides expert card grading for sports cards, TCGs, and non-sports cards. CGC Video Games is dedicated to video game grading for the most popular consoles, including Nintendo, Sega, Atari, PlayStation, and more. CGC Home Video provides expert VHS grading in addition to other types of videocassettes, DVD, Blu-ray, and more. CGC also offers seamless solutions for autograph collectors with CGC Signature Series and JSA Authentic Autograph services.

CGC is part of the Certified Collectibles Group, a global provider of expert and impartial authentication and grading services for collectibles. Since 1987, the Certified Collectibles Group companies have certified more than 110 million collectibles, including coins, banknotes, comic books, cards, autographs, and stamps.