Racing Chronograph Fans Should Know This Watch and the Unbeaten Record It Celebrates

Chopard is celebrating the 70th anniversary of a still-unbeaten record for finishing a classic Italian auto race with a limited edition watch.

By Brad Lanphear

Published June 10, 2025

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Updated 22 hours ago

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Few auto racing records still stand from 1955, and only one has a watch commemorating it.

In 1955, British driver Sir Stirling Moss finished the Mille Miglia with a record time that has remained unbroken, and Chopard is celebrating its 70th anniversary with a special edition racing chronograph.

a Chopard watch — The Mille Miglia logo sits below the brand logo on the dial.

For those who don’t speak Italian, the race’s name translates to 1,000 miles, which is the distance traveled over three days. The course travels through the Italian countryside from Brescia to Rome and back.

In its original format, the Mille Miglia was an endurance race pitting Europe’s best cars and drivers against each other. It ran from 1927 through 1938, returned in 1940, was interrupted by WWII, and resumed from 1947 through 1957.

a watch in front of a box — The color of the Mille Miglia Stirling Moss matches the car he drove in the 1955 race.

The Mille Miglia came back again in 1977 as a regulatory race, which pits restored and conserved cars from an established period against each other. By rule, the racers must drive cars that were produced before 1957.

Chopard has been the official timekeeper of the Mille Miglia since 1988. In keeping with the spirit of the race, the Mille Miglia chronograph collection, established in the same year, has maintained a look inspired by racing watches and dashboard instruments from the late 1950s.

10 hou., 7 min. and 48 sec.

Sir Stirling Moss was a British race car driver who competed in Formula 1 from 1951 to 1961. Despite never winning a Formula 1 Championship, he is considered one of the greatest drivers of his era, having won 212 official races across multiple formats.

a watch laying on a newspaper — Moss’s commemorative watch over an image of him at the race’s finish.

In 1955, Moss and his navigator, Denis Jenkinson — a motorsports journalist, not a professional driver — won the Mille Miglia in a record time of 10 hours, 7 minutes and 48 seconds. They traveled an average speed of 97.96 miles per hour through open public roads.

Besides establishing a new record time, Moss and Jenkins were the only Englishmen ever to win the race in its original format. Two pairs of German racers in 1931 and 1940 were the only other non-Italians to win.

a man in a race car — Sterling Moss and Denis Jenkins in their Mercedes 300 SLR that won the 1955 Mille Miglia.

The record finish was also noteworthy for Mercedes, as it was one of only two times the German sports car manufacturer won a race dominated by Alfa Romeo and Ferrari. Moss’s 300 SLR was a modification of the car he drove in Formula 1.

Still unbeaten

Since 1988, when Chopard began sponsoring the Italian endurance race, the Mille Miglia has been its signature racing watch. The Sterling Moss edition is a revamped version of the Classic Chronograph, introduced in 2023.

the back of a Chopard watch — The exhibition case back is decorated with a Union Jack in honor of Moss’s proud heritage.

The 40mm case is made from Chopard’s proprietary Lucient Steel, which has a distinctive luster evocative of mid-century race cars. It houses an ETA caliber A32.211 automatic chronograph movement with a frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour and a 54-hour power reserve.

The crown is signed with a steering wheel modeled after the one in Moss’s Mercedes, and the pushers have a knurled surface. The exhibition case back is decorated with a checkered racing flag crossed with a Union Jack in honor of Moss’s proud heritage.

Chopard designed the shiny silver dial to blend in with the case, creating a uniform finish inspired by the Mercedes driven by Moss and Jenkins in 1955. It comes on a brown leather racing strap that resembles the car’s upholstery.

a Chopard chronograph watch — The Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph Sterling Moss edition comes on a brown leather racing strap.

Every racing chronograph fan knows the TAG Heuer Monaco and the Rolex Daytona, but there are plenty of other excellent watches named after and made in conjunction with notable auto races.

The Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph is certainly a watch that should be on every enthusiast’s radar, and the Sterling Moss edition is its coolest iteration yet.

Availability and pricing

The Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph Sterling Moss is available now for $12,600.

However, it is a limited edition of only 70 pieces that can only be purchased in person at Chopard boutiques worldwide.

Chopard Mille Miglia Classic Stirling Moss Edition

Specs

Case Size	40mm
Movement	ETA caliber A32.211 automatic
Water Resistance	50m

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About the Author: Brad Lanphear is an associate editor at Gear Patrol covering watches and style. Before joining the publication, he previously wrote for Heddels and Men’s Health. Now, he’s on a never-ending quest to find the perfect pair of Japanese denim.