What We Know
Ahead of this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix, Tudor has announced the Black Bay Chrono “Carbon 26,” a follow-up to last year’s Carbon 25. While Tudor’s ties to motorsport date back to the late 1960s with the Tudor Watches Racing Team, its current partnership with the Visa Cash App Racing Bulls team began in 2024, and they have been quick to make the most of it, with two limited editions in two consecutive seasons. The Carbon 25 marked the first limited-edition release from that relationship, with the Carbon 26 continuing the same approach in 2026.
At its core, the update centers on a revised color scheme reflecting the livery of the VCARB 03 car. The watch retains a 42mm carbon fiber case with a fixed tachymeter bezel, along with a titanium caseback, crown, and pushers with a black PVD finish. The dial remains “racing white,” now with yellow accents and carbon fiber subdials.
The carbon fiber case, introduced last year, carries over unchanged. It replaces the steel case used in standard Black Bay Chronographs, while keeping the same 42mm diameter, fixed tachymeter bezel, screw-down crown, chronograph pushers, and overall case profile.
Inside is the Manufacture Chronograph Calibre MT5813, an automatic chronograph with a column wheel, vertical clutch, silicon balance spring, and a 70-hour power reserve. It is COSC-certified, and it also meets Tudor’s more rigorous standards of -2/+4 seconds per day.
The Black Bay Chrono “Carbon 26” is priced at $8,625, produced in a limited run of 2,026 pieces, and is available now.
What We Think
Let’s call this what it is—it’s essentially just a color refresh, especially considering that last year’s real headline was the introduction of a Black Bay Chronograph in carbon fiber. However, while there’s a dearth of innovation beyond the dial, I’m more interested in what this signals for Tudor as a brand and its growing involvement—and commitment—to this sport, and to sport more broadly. It’s a limited edition in name, but at 2,026 pieces, it’s hardly a small one.
In addition to the Carbon 25, last year also saw Tudor release the Tudor Pelagos FXD Chrono “Yellow” for the Tour de France and the Tudor Pelagos FXD Chrono “Pink” for the Giro d’Italia, both of which use the MT5813 movement despite being based on the FXD platform. With all of these releases over the course of a year, it points to Tudor standardizing around a single chronograph base while using different sports and platforms to shape how that watch is expressed.
Perhaps the most notable difference this year, though, is the price. At $8,625, the Carbon 26 represents a meaningful jump from last year’s $7,575. Whether that’s a function of broader pricing trends, material costs, or external factors, it’s a noticeable shift. With the watch otherwise unchanged beyond the color, it offers a clean one-to-one comparison—and a fairly stark one.
That’s a conversation for another time. For now, the story is Tudor continuing to invest in its F1 partnership, and we’ll likely see these out in the wild this weekend in Miami—on the wrists of Isack Hadjar and Arvid Lindblad, possibly atop a podium.
The Basics
Brand: Tudor
Model: Black Bay Chrono “Carbon 26”
Reference Number: 79377KN
Diameter: 42mm
Thickness: 14.3mm
Case Material: Carbon fiber (caseback, crown, and pushers in PVD-coated titanium)
Dial Color: “Racing white” with yellow accents and carbon fiber subdials
Indexes: Applied hour markers
Lume: Super-LumiNova on hands and markers
Water Resistance: 200m
Strap/Bracelet: Hybrid leather-rubber strap with carbon fiber end-links
The Movement
Caliber: Tudor Manufacture Chronograph Calibre MT5813
Functions: Hours, minutes, small seconds, chronograph (central seconds, 45-minute counter), date
Diameter: 30.4mm
Thickness: 7.23mm
Power Reserve: ~70 hours
Winding: Automatic (bi-directional rotor)
Frequency: 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
Jewels: 41
Chronometer Certified: Yes (COSC)
Additional Details: Column wheel and vertical clutch; silicon balance spring; stop-seconds for precise setting
Pricing & Availability
Price: $8,625
Availability: Available now
Limited Edition: Yes, 2,026 pieces (individually numbered)
For more, click here.
