When you start talking luxury watches, and chronographs, the main topic often is the Rolex Daytona. Not any chronograph from any brand, but the Daytona. I believe this circumstance also derives from being Italian and living in Italy, where Rolex is the luxury watch par excellence, and the Rolex Daytona is often an enthusiast’s primary choice.

Its history is rich and fascinating, and the collection’s link to motor racing is rooted in the first half of the 20^th century, decades before any other watch brand had ever appeared in a paddock.

1903 – 1935: the origins of the Rolex Daytona

How many of you are aware of how the Rolex Daytona came up? If you are familiar with my posts regarding Rolex, including a recent one where I compare the brand against a Japanese contender for the very first time, you’ll find out that I repeatedly underline the brand’s motto: “Every Rolex tells a story.” That motto is proof positive that Rolex has long since gone well beyond being merely a luxury watch brand to be a luxury icon instead.

It seems a Rolex was the first timepiece to officially wrap around a driver’s wrist during a speed record attempt, and the Rolex Daytona was a nod to Daytona Beach that has been, between 1903 and 1935, the venue of world-famous speed record attempts. On this hard sand-made soil, Americans and Europeans competed, but two contenders were first-page news: Sir Malcolm Campbell and Sir Henry Segrave.

Both British, rich and ambitious, Campbell and Segrave fought against each-other several times at Daytona Beach, a proving ground more suitable for high-speed racing than the British racetrack of Brooklands, in their quest for exceeding the 300km/h threshold. The cars and motorbikes that compete nowadays at Bonneville draw their inspiration from the aircraft-engine powered vehicles engineered by these two English gentlemen.

Segrave won the first competition, by setting a 328km/h speed record onboard its Sunbeam Mystery S, in 1928 Campbell clinched victory by exceeding 333km/h aboard the Bluebird. The following year Segrave raised the bar, and achieved a stunning 372km/h aboard the Golden Arrow, thus earning the New York Times‘ headlines.

Unfortunately, he tragically lost his life in 1930 during a boat speed record attempt, and Campbell became the undisputed pioneer of high-speed racing.

With the Bluebird IV and V, Sir Malcolm Campbell set a record of 253mph (407km/h) in 1932 and 276mph (445km/h) in 1935, respectively. Since 1930, Sir Malcolm Campbell used to daily wear a Rolex, thus confirming Campbell as the first international, and spontaneous, ambassador for Rolex. In those days, the Rolex Daytona was not existing, the first Cosmograph will appear only in 1963, but the brand was already associated with Daytona, and this paved the way for the chronograph to become legendary.

1936-1959: the evolution of Daytona Beach

As these prototypes kept increasing their top speed, consider the Bluebird V had a 2.300HP aircraft-derived engine under its long hood, Daytona Beach’s surface was not hard enough to guarantee full power delivery, and Bonneville soon replaced Daytona as the preferred location for high-speed die-hard fans.

Daytona Beach evolves by converting itself into a racetrack. That is the dawn of the NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Racing) championship, but soon this land strip on the ocean waterfront begins to deteriorate as a result of stock cars’ power slides; that’s why the president of NASCAR, William France Sr, plans to build a standard racetrack, that officially opened in 1959. Again, the Rolex Daytona is a long way off, but the legend of Daytona has begun, and Rolex keeps being connected to Daytona.

1959 – 2016: the Daytona International Speedway and the first-ever Rolex Daytona.

Back then, the Daytona International Speedway was a breakthrough: 5.73km long, it featured 12 turns, 2 of which inclined at an outrageous 31° to allow drivers reach high speeds while cornering without being rolled out due to centrifugal force. William France Sr also created a standard track inside the trio-oval shaped external one, to attract more and more professional race drivers to Daytona. The legend of the Rolex Daytona is about to begin, and Daytona laid the foundations.

The above-pictured advertisement (source: www.thewatchology.com) shows William France Sr along with his Rolex Zephyr Oyster Perpetual while he’s talking to celebrity Paul Whiteman; it further highlights why Rolex was and still is ahead of the competition: it pioneers communication like nobody else does and has established a unique relationship with its ambassadors from day one: they choose the brand, and not the other way round.

If you look closer, in the lower right-hand side of the advertisement, the Pan–Am logo reaffirms another iconic partnership signed by Rolex. What looks bizarre instead, is that no other brand joined the party, and ever competed with Rolex in such a fast-growing American business that was and still is unmatched from a business perspective. Rolex had no competitors along the way.

1963: the Rolex Cosmograph, the father of the Rolex Daytona.

Since the Daytona Continental’s first edition, the race winner was awarded a Rolex watch. When the Rolex Cosmograph debuted in 1963, that prize was not any Rolex, anymore, but a Rolex Cosmograph instead, a sports chronograph whose name soon became Rolex Cosmograph Daytona, and finally Rolex Daytona.

The Rolex Daytona was spotted on race drivers’ wrist, and became a widely acclaimed celebrity, years before Rolex eventually partnered with the competition, to become an official sponsor to the 24 Hours of Daytona endurance race, in 1992.

That agreement formally certified what had been achieved already: Hollywood stars and race drivers too, like Paul Newman, were daily wearing their Rolex Daytona during the race and out.

The first-ever Rolex Cosmograph, reference 6239, appeared in 1963, as an evolution to reference 6238, the so-called Rolex Pre–Daytona. From an aesthetic standpoint, the most significant change over the previous version was the shift of the tachymeter scale from the chapter ring onto the bezel, along with the introduction of panda and reversed panda dial lay-outs.

The first Cosmograph yet confirms a Daytona’s distinctive feature: the bezel is slightly larger than anywhere else, and the tachymetric scale is super-legible.

This area is where Rolex will first and foremost concentrate its efforts to improve readability further and make it a distinctive element. Often imitated, but never equaled.

Square shaped indexes inside each register, a red seconds scale, and a red bold “Daytona” wording on the dial are the key attributes of Paul Newman’s most-loved wristwatch and the above variant, unanimously regarded today as the Rolex Paul Newman Daytona.

1965: the Rolex Daytona’s screw-down push-buttons and a black bezel.

The upcoming new Rolex Daytona reference 6340 (and its siblings) introduces significant innovations: the standard chronograph buttons are replaced by screw-down buttons, that guarantee water resistance and prevent any unwanted start of the chronograph. A black plexiglass inlay with engraved tachymetric scale replaces the steel bezel.

From a technical perspective, the 1965 Rolex Daytona is the first-ever chronometer-certified Daytona, and it also comes in 18-carat gold for the first time; Gold Daytonas, both vintage and modern, are as popular as their steel-made counterparts. Reference 6240 opens a product cycle that will eventually end in 1988, and so does the story of the manually-wound Rolex Daytona.

1988: here is the first-ever self-winding Rolex Daytona

1988 marks the beginning of a new chapter, with the Rolex Daytona receiving a major update and living up to most people expectations, as they look for a modern chronograph equally refined aesthetically and mechanically. One step at a time: this is the first-ever automatic Daytona. Since Rolex has no chronograph movement in-house, opts for the best they can outsource, and equips its Daytona with a re-engineered Zenith El Primero movement.

The frequency is lowered to 28,800 vibrations per hour to improve long-term reliability, the balance wheel has a variable inertia and is produced in-house, and is coupled to a Breguet spring-coil, and adopts the patented Perpetual winding mechanism. Last but not least, the Rolex caliber 4030 is a COSC-certified chronometer.

Rolex is thus laying the foundations to build its chronograph movement, the caliber 4130. The game-changer here is the thoroughly-redesigned case and bezel: the former grows from 36mm to a more popular 40mm, to include a wide bezel that is a modern Daytona’s hallmark.

Usually listed as Rolex Daytona Zenith 16520 or Rolex Daytona 16520, this specific model stands out from a technical standpoint as it sets apart from the legendary Zenith El Primero equipped Chronos: the oscillating weight has a proprietary design.

The balance wheel offers a four-spoke design instead of the Zenith calibre 400’s three ones. The balance wheel of the Rolex Daytona Zenith is bigger than its sibling (it vibrates at a lower frequency) and adopts Microstella screws and a Breguet hairspring. The balance wheel has no adjustment racket ( free-sprung hairspring). A few macro differences between the two calibres are listed above.

It is wide, in steel and tapered, showcasing an up–to–400–unit engraved tachymetric scale. The Rolex Daytona 16520 is the forerunner of the modern Daytona, and its style still wins over the current steel version with the ceramic bezel to most watch aficionados, other than including a long list of extremely sought-after releases, like the Rolex Daytona Patrizzi, for example.

The Rolex Daytona Patrizzi

The Rolex Daytona Patrizzi reference 16520 (with steel case and bracelet), known as Daytona Patrizzi, is undoubtedly one of the most sought-after Rolex Daytona. The Chrono counter rings’ colour that turns from silver to brownish (the same happens with reference 116520, whose white dial turns to light green over time) makes this timepiece particularly sought after.

It was Osvaldo Patrizzi to have first noticed the phenomenon, a patina effect generated by a chemical reaction activated by the low protection of silver, which, if not adequately protected against external agents, is subject to a natural and progressive oxidation process.

2000: the Rolex caliber 4130 replaces the 4030, the style is tweaked.

The Rolex Daytona 16520 is by far the most successful Daytona to date, Rolex has found its way to the ultimate chronograph. I have personally never loved the tachymetric scale engraved onto the polished steel bezel, but we know style is a subjective matter, however there’s no doubt it offers superior readability, further improved with the introduction of the ceramic bezel.

Among the all-time Daytona’s pros is that Rolex never added a date window, thus preserving the overall balance and avoiding to make a chronograph born for race competitions look less credible and too commercial.

The year 2000 is a landmark: Rolex introduces its first in-house automatic chronograph movement, the caliber 4130, whose engineering aims at efficiency, better serviceability, an improved maximum power reserve of up to 72 hours and much more. The “Daytona” lettering is also engraved on the winding rotor.

As a result of the new design, the register layout changes, the seconds counter shifts from the nine o’clock position to the six o’clock position and the two horizontal counters are no longer aligned with the hour and minute hands but moved slightly higher.

2004: Rolex Daytona Leopard

In 2004, Rolex launched the most luxurious and eccentric Cosmograph Daytona ever (before the Daytona Rainbow hit the market). The SACO Leopard Rolex Daytona reference 116598 opened a new chapter for the gold Rolex Daytona and soon became a hot piece after being spotted on Nicholas Cage’s wrist.

Take a quick look at the dial, and you’ll instantly get why this is called “the Leopard”. Introduced at Baselworld back then, the model sports a bezel filled with orange sapphires, something we have seen. In 2022, tennis player and long-time ambassador Roger Federer wore a Daytona with a similar bezel.

2016: the Rolex Daytona in steel comes with a Cerachrom bezel.

In 2005 Rolex launched gmt-master-2-history-price-models/">Cerachrom on the GMT-Master 2, its patented ceramic bezel and in 2016, it replaced a stainless steel Rolex Daytona‘s bezel with a Cerachrom black bezel. The Cerachrom bezel appears on a Daytona in 2011 for the first time; it equips a new generation of gold Daytonas, namely the Rolex Daytona Everose Gold 18 carats reference 116515LN, featuring Arabic numerals, chocolate dial, and a leather strap.

Next, the ceramic bezel appeared on the top-of-the-line Rolex Daytona in platinum, featuring a brown disc with contrasting white numerals and indexes. With the Cerachrom bezel, the numerals are also arranged along a circumference, and this design trick makes the dial plus bezel combo look larger than ever before.

2016: the Rolex Daytona Steel Cerachrom

The Rolex Oyster Perpetual Cosmograph Daytona Steel and Cerachrom marked a milestone for the collection.

While the Daytona offers unparalleled dial design and beautiful proportions, we thought the tachymeter scale was outdated and desired to get the base model to mimic the most precious models on offer, with the tachymeter scale contrasting the case. We approve such a design concept on any chronograph, not just a Rolex watch.

The bezel insert is in Cerachrom ceramic and steel.

That Cerachrom disc makes the Daytona less classic-feeling and sportier and guarantees superior scratch resistance while making the Daytona bolder than ever before.

Also, consider that the bezel has, since 1988, lost its flat design, turning to a broader and cambered profile; as a result, the tachymeter scale is provided with a larger surface and is, therefore, easier to read while further linking the flat sapphire crystal with the crown protectors.

Unlike other chronographs, there is no gap between the case, bezel, crystal and bracelet; it feels like the bezel is inserted into the case. The outcome is a bold, compelling design whose luxury sport feel (and 904l steel alloy) makes it premium from every angle.

2017: The Rolex Daytona Gold Cerachrom Panda, on Oysterflex

The Formula 1’s official sponsor has rapidly developed the new Rolex Daytona product line-up, kicked off with the 2013 platinum variant, which paved the way for the Cerachrom bezel, all the way through the two steel models – the 116500LN either in white or black – and the stunning three options in gold with a panda dial, in 2017.

According to the brand’s timeline, Rolex introduced the new gold Rolex Daytona with Cerachrom bezel and Oysterflex bracelet, under reference 116515LN, with applied Arabic numerals or baton indexes, and an Everose gold case.

What sets the latest versions apart from the first releases is the launch of panda dial variants, followed by white and yellow gold options, some echoing the Daytona 62XX series.

The Oysterflex strap has replaced the Oyster bracelet on the Cerachrom-equipped Daytona watches, thus getting the most out of the blade and elastomer-equipped strap to give these specific models a long-lasting appearance and experience on the wrist. Please remind that Oysterflex first appeared on the Yacht-Master 40 reference 116655.

2018: The Rolex Daytona Rainbow

The original Rolex Daytona Rainbow was introduced in 2012 in two options: one with a yellow gold case and the other with a white one. However, Rolex updated the Daytona Rainbow in 2018, releasing what we regard as the ultimate Rainbow Daytona, sporting an Everose rose gold case. Why is this model called Daytona Rainbow? Take a quick look at the bezel, and you’ll get why; the tachymeter scale has been replaced by 36 baguette-cut sapphires row whose colour combination mimics a rainbow.

Daytona Rainbow is not a nickname but the model’s name, as proved by the reference number 116595RBOW, whose four last letters stand for “RAINBOW”. Sapphires are everywhere, including the baton indexes on the dial, while the three Chrono counters are in Gold Crystals, a pink gold alloy made by Rolex. Also, the case is decorated with 56 brilliant-cut diamonds. The Daytona Rainbow is, without a doubt, the most expensive Rolex Daytona out there and has a market price of well over 500,000 Euros.

2021: Rolex Daytona Meteorite

In 2021, Rolex introduced three new Daytona showcasing a metallic meteorite dial. One sported a white gold case and Oysterflex strap, thus housing a Cerachrom-made ceramic bezel.

The other options are full gold, 18-karat yellow gold, or Everose. All features chronograph counters contrasting the metallic meteorite dial.

The original proposition has then been enlarged. As of February 2023, there are five Rolex Daytona meteorites on offer; Rolex added a new yellow gold Daytona Meteorite on Oysterflex and a full white gold one.

The New Rolex Daytona 2023

In 2023, to mark its 60th anniversary, the Rolex Daytona underwent a significant update in style and engineering.

While we won’t expect any drastic changes regarding Rolex’s product replacements – the new one preserves the collection’s overall size and proportions – the aesthetic and technical upgrades mark a more consistent upgrade than ever.

Case and dial

Let’s start with the dial, the main talking point, providing a stronger contrast between the chronograph counters and the base to further highlight Daytona’s signature V-shaped layout.

The rings surrounding the registers are now mirror-polished, and all the models housing a ceramic bezel sport a thin ring around the insert itself.

The case has been slightly updated, too. A more squared case design and slimmer lugs make for a sportier, bolder look. According to the brand’s official sources, the case side offers a more luxurious appearance.

The new Rolex calibre 4131

The headline news is the new Rolex calibre 4131, replacing the 4130 movement in specs and design. It now comes with a first-ever skeletonized oscillating mass, crafted in gold on the top-end models, and the movement’s bridges are finished with Côtes de Genève Rolex. It differs from ordinary decoration for holding a thin shiny line between one streak and another.

The engineers worked hard to reduce the chronograph function’s parts as much as possible; also, the new 4131 now houses the Chronergy escapement, widely available across the brand’s offering, and optimized ball bearings.

Once wound, the 2023 Daytona can run for at least 72 hours. The pictures above are the new calibre’s options; the Rolex Daytona Platinum 2023 offers a see-through case back for the first time.

The Rolex Daytona celebrates the 100th Anniversary of Le Mans 24 Hours.

The Le Mans 24 Hours turned 100 years in 2023. It is a historic milestone, with Ferrari unexpectedly winning the commemorative edition upon its return to the competition.

Rolex celebrated such an anniversary with a commemorative Daytona that has driven enthusiasts crazy. The new Rolex Daytona 100th Anniversary 24 Hours of Le Mans is a specific take on the newly-released Daytona for 2023.

Its main traits are the unique association between a white gold case and bracelet with the Cerachrom tachymeter-scale insert, which we have seen exclusively paired with the Oysterflex strap. The new Rolex Daytona 100th Anniversary 24 Hours of Le Mans also stands out for some unique treatment.

The ceramic-made red “number 100” on the tachymeter scale stands out and brilliantly matches the red Daytona inscription on the dial. The white chrono registers inspired by the Paul Newman Daytona’s dial exemplify a nod to the past.

However, it’s more than just a matter of design since this special Cosmograph Daytona houses a 24-hour counter replacing the ordinary 12-hour one.

As a result, the watch adopts a new self-winding calibre, the Rolex 4132, equipped with such a specific mechanical complication. As with any high-end Rolex Daytona, the price is on request.

The most expensive Rolex Daytona ever

Which is the most expensive Rolex Daytona ever? It is the Rolex Daytona Paul Newman reference 6239 that the actor and pilot himself wore most of the time. It was auctioned at Phillips in New York on October 26, 2017, and fetched a hard-to-believe $17,752,500.

The most expensive Cosmograph Daytona was once bought by Paul Newman’s wife, Joanne Woodward, most probably at Tiffany.

The timepiece, produced in 1968, has the case back engraved with “Drive carefully, me”, considering the actor was a pro car racer.

The Rolex Daytona’s current ambassadors.

Paul Newman was perhaps the most famous ambassador of Rolex and the Daytona‘s par excellence. Today, the list of Rolex‘s official ambassadors is long and includes current and former race drivers who race or have raced in multiple championships. Rolex is a global partner of the Formula 1 world championship, but is also partnering with the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Goodwood Revival, the Monterey Classic Car Week and, last but not least, the FIA ​​World Endurance Championship.

Among his current ambassadors is former Formula 1 driver Mark Webber and former 2016 Formula 1 world champion Nico Rosberg, while endurance race champion Tom Kristensen is the brand’s longstanding ambassador in the modern era; they all join another Daytona‘s iconic ambassador: Sir Jackie Stewart.

Rolex Daytona price list

How much does a Rolex Daytona cost? The Daytona’s retail price ranges from €14,900 for the highly sought-after reference 116500LN in steel with a Cerachrom bezel to over €70,000 for a platinum Daytona (the list price is not listed on the official website). For more information, please read our article on Rolex pricing.

(Photo credit: Horbiter®, Rolex, Google)

Redazione @Horbiter®