Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph 2025 Watch Review
The Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph 2025: Tribute to Sir Stirling Moss is the latest motorsport-inspired creation from the luxury Swiss marque. It pays tribute to the legendary British racing driver who famously piloted his Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR, with co-driver Denis Jenkinson by his side, completing the 1000 mile race distance at an average speed of 98 mph, setting a record for the Mille Miglia that remains unbroken. Nina Scally begins by discussing why horophiles are often petrolheads and why car fanatics tend to love watches before going on to look at Chopard’s latest chronograph, the product of a family firm passionate about motorsport.
Image – ©Patrick Csajko
Horophiles and petrolheads
If you spend your days elbow-deep in engine oil, chances are you think that gears are cool no matter whether you find them in a car, on a boat or in a watch. There is something unequivocally charming about a mechanically driven object, particularly when it comes to luxury timepieces and cars. The niche space that occupies the cusp of the watchmaking industry and the edge of the motorsport world is considered a playground of innovation for brands like Chopard, now marking the 70th anniversary of Sir Stirling Moss’s historical 1955 Mille Miglia victory with a new watch, limited to just 70 pieces.
There is a natural cross-pollination between car racing and watchmaking. A deep communal well of watch enthusiasts lives somewhere between the two, often catalysed by some sort of emotional connection that drew them there in the first place. It’s a community devoid of snobbery, where scrutinising seemingly minor details is anything but obsessive. Pondering over applied or printed indices on a watch dial is acceptable. Debating about the tapering of a bracelet or the engineering of a watch clasp is as important as the engine mapping on an F1 car or the small, unforgiving margins around tyre pressures and air-fuel ratios. Engines, whether they drive or tick, attract hobbyists who share a congenital, inborn love of mechanical design and an interest in high-performance engineering.
Image shows Karl Scheufele of Chopard with Sir Stirling Moss – ©Bruno-Lyet
Chopard and racing
One brand that has been part of this secret handshake community for decades is Chopard. The company became the official sponsor and timekeeper for the 1000 Miglia race back in 1988. While many partnerships between watch brands and sporting events come and go due to shifts in management or the natural ebb and flow of horological trends, Chopard has remained steadfast in its commitment to timing the 1000 Miglia race each year.
Image – Sir Stirling Moss and Denis Jenkinson at the Mille Miglia (1955)
It’s a bonus that this family-run business is also genuinely passionate about motorsport and has been directly involved in the race, having competed in it every year since 1989. Suffice to say, Chopard’s raw, unbridled love for motorsport is palpable and its historic catalogue of annual, racing-inspired designs – the Mille Miglia collection – brims with proof.
The relationship between Chopard and the Mille Miglia race has become a cornerstone of the brand’s identity, the genesis of which lies behind Co-President Karl-Friedrich Scheufele’s passion for motorsport. As a devoted participant in the rally, his love for vintage machines runs deeper than the Mariana Trench. Scheufele continues to attend what is now a much tamer, classic car regularity race each year, taking in the medieval city of Brescia and the captivating ‘Eternal City’ of Rome along the way. Historically, however, the Mille Miglia, which ran between 1927 and 1957, was a gruelling 1000-mile endurance race, demanding immense precision on the part of the driver along with power and reliability from the car.
Image – ©Patrick Csajko
Timing the perfect lap
Sir Stirling Moss’s 1955 Mille Miglia victory was no happy accident. Both he and his racing partner, Denis Jenkinson, meticulously mapped out the entire route to the nth degree. They memorised the iconic journey, marked hazards, and, under the deafening cacophony of the engine, learnt to communicate with one another using hand signals. Despite a few rookie mistakes, they triumphed, completing the race in a record time of 10 hours, 7 minutes, and 48 seconds on May 1st 1955. And since the race was banned following a tragic accident in 1957, Moss’s record remains eternal.
Accurate timing devices have always been important in motorsport events, but Chopard’s instruments are even more crucial in a regularity rally like the modern-day Mille Miglia. Hitting predetermined times at specific sections of the route is an integral part of the race, as is reaching designated checkpoints, maintaining a specific average speed and avoiding penalty points. Onboard clocks and chronographs are calibrated to synchronise with the official race time, leaving no room for error.
Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph 2025 – case
Back in 2023, team Chopard took part in its 36th race with the Mercedes 300 SL. Scheufele partnered up with his close friend and Grand Prix legend, Jacky Ickx. To mark the occasion (as is tradition for Chopard), a new chronograph was launched, offered in four colourways. These models showcased a new case design using the watchmaker’s proprietary Lucent Steel. Adopting this reshaped profile, the new Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph Tribute to Sir Stirling Moss sports the same welded lugs, mirroring ‘the architecture of vintage racing cars’. It tips its hat to the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing that Scheufele and Ickx drove again at this year’s 38th Mille Miglia race.
A ‘glass box’ sapphire crystal sits atop the 40.5 mm twice-smelted Lucent Steel case. It gives way to a view of silver opaline tones – a fitting hue that echoes the silver-coloured bodywork of Moss’s original Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR that he and Denis Jenkinson drove to victory in 1955.
Lucent Steel is Chopard’s very own exclusive alloy, composed of 80% recycled steel. The resultant cases are 50% harder than conventional steel and hypoallergenic. In addition, the purity of Lucent Steel confers a notable brilliance.
In this instance, the case also features knurled chronograph pushers, a polished bezel, polished lugs and a crown adorned with a steering wheel, presented in relief. To the rear of the case, Chopard has paid tribute to Moss’s record-breaking performance, engraving the case with the duration of his unassailable record time. The sapphire exhibition caseback bears a crossed flags insignia and ‘one of 70’ inscription.
Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph 2025 – dial
Mille Miglia devotees will find sporty Arabic numerals framing the central area of the dial. Both the hour markers and the hour and minute hands have received a liberal coating of Super-LumiNova, while punches of red, arranged in five-minute increments, aid read-off and echo the iconic ‘1000 Miglia’ lettering. Blue details grace the tachymetre scale, allowing the wearer to determine the speed of a vehicle over a known distance.
Finally, snailed subdials, arranged in the traditional 3-6-9 layout, add depth to the dial, while the addition of a discreet window at 4:30 rounds out the list of indications.
Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph 2025 – movement
An exhibition caseback affords sight of a ‘mechanical self-winding chronograph movement’. Chopard has subjected this automatic calibre to the independent scrutiny of COSC, culminating in the award of chronometer certification. The movement delivers a 54-hour power reserve once fully wound and has a frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour.
The Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph 2025 is presented on a perforated brown calf leather strap, incorporating tone-on-tone stitching, that secures to the wrist with a Lucent Steel pin buckle.
Closing Remarks
Many watch brands recognise that petrolheads and horophiles share the same fascination for mechanics, performance and precision. However, few firms can match Chopard’s legitimacy as ‘Official Timekeeper of the Mille Miglia’, a longterm partner since 1988 and the only watch company whose co-president can be seen donning a pair of racing gloves in his pursuit of octane-rich thrills.
Moss once remarked, “Chopard, to my mind, is one of the finest watches available, and I rarely wear anything else”. Furthermore, he once stated, “The Mille Miglia was the only race that really frightened me…”. Clearly, Sir Stirling was a discerning gentleman and a courageous man who drove at incredible speeds, setting a record time for the Mille Miglia that will never be beaten.
With the release of the Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph Tribute to Sir Stirling Moss Limited Edition, Chopard has crafted a watch that celebrates a great man. Throughout his career, the British driver exhibited extraordinary skills behind the wheel. He had a remarkable knack for ‘setting a car up for a corner’, he could ‘heal and toe’ with the best, and he drove at the limit in an era where danger was a constant presence. Ultimately, his courage led to a sideboard overflowing with silverware and led to him leaving an enduring legacy few will match. With the advent of this watch, Chopard has created a timepiece packed with an array of attributes that does justice to the great man’s esteemed reputation; a watch that will undoubtedly engage with petrolheads and horophiles alike.
Further reading
Technical Specification
- Model: Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph Tribute to Sir Stirling Moss Limited Edition
- Reference: 168619-3012
- Case: Lucent Steel, diameter 40.5 mm, height 12.88 mm, 5 bar (50 metres); sapphire crystal to front and exhibition caseback.
- Functions: hours, minutes, chronograph seconds, date, 30-minute, 12-hour, running seconds
- Dial: opaline silver, blue tachymetric scale, red-tipped chronograph seconds hands, date at 4:30
- Movement: self-winding chronograph movement, frequency 28,800 vph (4 Hz), 37 jewels, power reserve of approximately 54 hours.
- Strap: brown perforated calfskin leather strap with Lucent Steel™ pin buckle
- Availability: limited edition of 70
- Price: £9,230 (RRP as of 11.7.2025)