A Pokémon-shaped Flamin’ Hot Cheeto is on auction as pat of Goldin’s February lot of pop culture stuff. If you want it, you’ve got just over nine days to place a bid. Though the auction started on Feb. 10 at $250, the price continued to rise until it surpassed $1,000 on Thursday. So far, 11 people have bid on what may very well be the rarest and weirdest piece of Charizard memorabilia. The 3-inch Cheeto is said to have been “discovered and preserved” between the years of 2018 and 2022 by Georgia-based collectibles store 1st and Goal Collectibles.
Last year, 1st and Goal Collectibles posted on Instagram in 2024 that it had acquired Cheetozard five years prior, and had forgotten about it after abandoning it in a safe. Previously, it lived in a plastic box before moving into a roomier, still seemingly plastic space with a custom Pokémon card framing. The store was originally looking for a company to “encapsulate” it, but one company declined.
An online card marketplace, Arena Club, seemingly acquired the Cheetozard from 1st and Goal Collectibles in November 2024 and included it a mystery card pack that month — giving it away to one lucky buyer. From there, the Cheeto has found its way onto the Goldin auction block. What a journey.
Polygon reached out to Goldin for more information about Cheetozard, including to inquire whether they believe the artifact is naturally occurring or if it’s been modified to look like Charizard. “The Cheeto was found this way and has not been modified,” a Goldin representative told Polygon.
How much could the Cheetozard go for at auction? Let’s look to history. In 2021, an Among Us character-shaped McDonald’s chicken nugget sold for $99,997 on eBay. While the nugget was listed originally for 99 cents, the first bid massively increased the price to $14,869.69. And then it just kept going up, until the $99,997 number 184 bids later. If you want to compare to something Charizard, a holographic 1999 first-edition “Shadowless” Charizard card, with a PSA 10 Gem Mint rating, sold for $311,800. Of course, that card is not edible — depending on who you ask.
In the rare Cheeto arena, we can look to a Cheeto in the shape of late gorilla Harambe, which sold for $99,900. On eBay, there are a whole bunch of other peculiarly-shaped Cheetos, many of which seem to be generating little to no interest. Want a Cheeto vaguely shaped like Tiger Woods? You got it. There’s also Oogie Boogie, the Loch Ness Monster, a dolphin jumping out of water, and a baby seal. So far, Cheetozard seems to be generating the most interest.
Source：https://www.polygon.com/culture/526839/cheeto-charizard-auction-pokemon-collectibles
