Motorsports are inherently dangerous. High-speed driving requires drivers to operate at the very edge of the performance and safety envelope. Time is at the centre of all forms of competitive driving. It’s what separates winners from losers. Champions are made and lost in fractions of a second. TUDOR knows a thing or two about how important time is to the best drivers in the world. Long ago in the late 1960s, when TUDOR was campaigning a cutting-edge Porsche 906 in Japan, the drivers wore TUDOR watches on their wrists. In 2026, TUDOR continues to keep racing drivers on time. Liam Lawson and rookie Arvid Lindblad wear the Black Bay Chrono “Carbon 26”. 

The Black Bay Chrono “Carbon 26” continues the long tradition of TUDOR’s presence on the track as well as that of a TUDOR watch for each Formula 1 race season. This chronograph represents TUDOR’s relentless pursuit of mechanical performance. Carbon fibre is the ideal material for a racing chronograph because of its weight-saving advantages. Less weight equals more speed, and that speed can be accurately measured using Manufacture Calibre MT5813’s chronograph function in conjunction with the one-piece tachymetric bezel, which is also fashioned out of lightweight carbon fibre. Even the end-links that affix the hybrid strap to the case are rendered in carbon fibre—every little bit of weight shed counts. For a purely aesthetic touch, even the chronograph sub-counters as well as the date window surround are rendered in carbon fibre thanks to a layered dial construction, alternating brass discs and carbon fibre sheets. 

The aesthetic accents of the Black Bay Chrono “Carbon 26” directly pay homage to the Visa Cash App Racing Bulls team car, dubbed the VCARB 03. The striking yellow present on the engine cowling adorns the dial on the “Carbon 26”, lending it a high-speed look. Only 2,026 examples of the Black Bay Chronograph “Carbon 26” will be made, each individually numbered on the case back, paying homage to yet another important year in TUDOR’s ever-evolving motorsport history. 

The Spirit of Asphalt and Sea

Remaining faithful to the Black Bay aesthetic, the Black Bay Chrono model has made the famous “Snowflake” hands – a brand signature for divers’ watches since the 1960s – its own, in a version honed to ensure optimum readability on its domed “racing white” dial with two hollowed black sub-counters. Inspired by the first generation of TUDOR chronographs, the dial layout includes a 45-minute counter and a date aperture positioned at 6 o’clock. The recognisable characteristics of the Black Bay line – bevelled lugs and TUDOR rose-signed crown – are preserved in a carbon fibre case with a 42mm diameter. Typical of the scrupulous attention to detail that is characteristic of the brand, the design of the titanium pushers has been inspired by the very first generation of TUDOR chronographs. A fixed bezel in carbon fibre with a tachymetric scale completes the look and function of these sporty chronographs.

The Manufacture Chronograph Calibre MT5813

The Manufacture Chronograph Calibre MT5813, which powers the Black Bay Chrono model, displays hour, minute, second, chronograph and date functions. It has the finish typical of TUDOR Manufacture Calibres. Its rotor in tungsten monobloc is openwork and satin-brushed with sand-blasted details, and its bridges and mainplate have alternate sand-blasted and polished surfaces with laser decorations.

Boasting a 70-hour power reserve and a silicon balance spring, the Manufacture Chronograph Calibre MT5813 is certified by the Official Swiss Chronometer Testing Institute (COSC), with its performance exceeding the standards set by this independent institute. In fact, where COSC allows an average variation in the daily rate of an uncased movement of between -4/+6 seconds’ variation per day, TUDOR applies a -2/+4 seconds’ variation standard on the completely assembled watch. A high-performance movement, it was crafted in the purest watchmaking tradition, with a column wheel mechanism and vertical clutch. In keeping with the TUDOR philosophy of quality, it presents extraordinary robustness and reliability, guaranteed by the array of extreme tests applied to all TUDOR products.

Derived from the Manufacture Chronograph Calibre B01 from Breitling, with a high-precision regulating organ developed by TUDOR and exclusive finishes, this movement is the result of a lasting collaboration between the two brands, which have chosen to pool their expertise in the design and production of certain mechanical movements.

The Essence of Black Bay

Like other models in the Black Bay range, the Black Bay Chrono has adopted TUDOR’s characteristic angular hands known as “Snowflake” that first appeared in the brand’s 1969 catalogue. The result of a subtle blend of traditional aesthetics and contemporary watchmaking, the Black Bay line is far from simply being an identical rerelease of a classic. Resolutely anchored in the present, it brings together over 70 years of TUDOR divers’ watches. Whilst it is neo-vintage in conception, its manufacturing techniques and its robustness, reliability, durability and precision as well as the quality of its finish are above modern industry standards.