Leonardo DiCaprio’s Rolex Daytona Is Proof He Only Wears Mega Grails

The Hollywood royalty seated courtside at NBA games is consistently one of the best places in the world to spot serious horological heat. This week the wattage was particularly high as Leonardo DiCaprio dropped in for a Los Angeles Lakers game wearing a Rolex Cosmograph Daytona ref. 116509 “Racing.” This special Daytona is part of the early crop of references to feature an in-house, automatic Rolex movement and also one of the first to feature an entirely white-gold case and Oyster bracelet. It also looks cool as hell.

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Even when it comes to the famously private DiCaprio, we seem to know less about his watch collection than we do his personal life. Trying to piece together his best pieces quickly leads you all the way back to the ’90s when he wore a “Zenith” Daytona. In between that chronograph and this one, DiCaprio famously donned a Tiffany-dial Patek Philippe Nautilus; still, he’s mostly known for the baseball caps he keeps low to his head rather than a voluminous wrist roll. But with that very special Nautilus and a few Daytonas, what we do know is that DiCaprio only collects the very best.

DiCaprio’s ref. 116509 marks a few important evolutions for the Rolex brand. It is part of the early era of Daytonas from the 2000s to feature Rolex’s first in-house automatic chronograph movement after it had used a heavily modified one for Zenith the previous decade. DiCaprio’s reference is also the first with these new movements available in white gold. Offered in several configurations, one of the most striking is the so-called Racing variant with red “Daytona” text, red chronograph totalizer numerals, and a red seconds hand. Inspired by the model’s history as an automotive tool watch designed for the track, the Racing references themselves came in several variations. DiCaprio’s, with its silver dial, black totalizer rings and Arabic numerals, and white-gold construction, is certainly one of the most sporty.

This Racing Daytona dates to an interesting time in both Rolex’s and DiCaprio’s history. The watch neatly dovetails with a classic era in the actor’s oeuvre: The Beach, Blood Diamond, The Aviator, The Departed, Gangs of New York, and Catch Me If You Can all came out during this period. Horologically speaking, much was afoot during these days: Firmly the era of Big Watch, it was a time of 47-mm Panerais and 44-mm IWC pilot’s watches, and also a period in which you could still (largely) walk into a Rolex AD and walk out with a watch. (The good days.)

Mark Zuckerberg’s Rolex Daytona

Let’s keep this Daytona train a-rollin’ with a New Year’s post from one Mark Zuckerberg, freshly minted Crown Prince of Haute Horlogerie. (“Watches are….COOL!”) The eagle-eyed social media snipers among you may have noticed the Meta millennial rocking a special watch on Instagram a few days back: A solid yellow-gold ref. 6239 “Paul Newman” Daytona with a champagne dial. An early “pump pusher” reference that predates the waterproof Oyster-case Daytonas, such a watch will run you well over a milly—should you even be able to find one. From barely registering Switzerland as a national entity to rocking one of the rarest Daytonas in the world in the space of a year, this man exhibits a highly accelerated growth as a collector that deserves its own distinct prize at the GPHG.

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Timothée Chalamet’s Cartier Santos-Dumont

We can now count on Chalamet for an excellent Cartier. The latest to grace his wrist is this handsome yellow-gold Santos-Dumont with a black satin-brushed dial, gold Roman indices, and a blue cabochon crown that the actor wore during a UK screening of A Complete Unknown. A modern take on the watch Louis Cartier presented to Brazilian-born aviation pioneer Alberto Santos-Dumont at the turn of the 20th century, this is a watch that positively oozes charm, with a dressy quality that belies its sporty origins. Technically, the original Santos-Dumont could be considered the first dedicated pilot’s watch, as it was meant to allow its namesake to operate his flying machines with his hands free. Unfortunately, we couldn’t see which watch Tom Cruise—pictured with Chalamet—was wearing…but we’re positive it was something dope.

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Russell Westbrook’s Rolex Daytona “John Mayer”

Finally, we have Denver Nuggets point guard Russell Westbrook in a watch GQ readers are sure to be intimately familiar with, the famous ref. 116508 “John Mayer” Daytona. It got its nickname when this guitar-player guy—perhaps you’ve heard of him?—touted its bona fides during an episode of Hodinkee’s Talking Watches, after which it went from obscure to “can’t-keep-it-on-the-shelves” popular. Featuring an 18k-yellow-gold case with a green dial and a gold Oyster bracelet, it’s an oddball Daytona, to be sure, but an excellent left-of-center option for the guy who doesn’t want (or already has) a Paul Newman.

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Vinicius Junior’s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak

Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior accepted his Best FIFA Men’s Player Award while wearing some serious hardware: The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak ref. 26240OR.OO.1320OR.07, a solid rose-gold take on the brand’s famed luxury sports watch designed by Gérald Genta, is a hefty bit of wrist candy with a silver Grand Tapisserie dial, rose-gold indices and hands, a triple-register chronograph, and the automatic Calibre 4401 movement. Of course, its best feature is its beautiful integrated bracelet, a distinctive design that makes the Royal Oak recognizable from across the room. The RO is far from the only excellent watch in Junior’s collection, however, which includes several gold Rolexes and a handful of pieces from independent makers.