Since its launch in 2005, Only Watch has been one of the most – if not the most – significant auctions in the watch world. A biennial charity auction founded by Luc Pettavino, Only Watch is organized by the Monegasque Association Against Muscular Dystrophy (MAAMD) under the patronage of Prince Albert II of Monaco.

Brands donate unique timepieces to be auctioned, with 100 percent of the proceeds financing research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a debilitating and life-threatening genetic disorder that affects around one in 3,500 boys, including Pettavino’s son, who died of the disease in November 2016.

Ahead of the eighth edition of this auction taking place on November 9, 2019 in Geneva, let’s take a look at the ten chronographs going under the hammer in the name of doing one’s best for helping those affected by Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Chronographs: by popular demand

Chronographs, watches that can measure elapsed time intervals, are among the most popular complications available in wristwatches today. With that in mind, it is surprising that only ten out of a total of 50 donated watches are, in fact, chronographs.

Or maybe not, as not every brand participating has a chronograph in its existing collection. Only Watch is not driven by popular demand, with only one watch made per brand especially for this charity auction.

This auction is a great opportunity for collectors as it allows them to obtain unique watches. And with chronographs such a popular category, there is always a lot of attention put on these watches.

There is unique, and there is prototype unique: RM 11-03 Automatic Flyback Chronograph McLaren

As Only Watch is a charity auction, there are no restrictions or regulations on what should make the watch unique. So this was a great opportunity for Richard Mille to donate a prototype of one of its most imposing creations: the RM 11-03 Automatic Flyback Chronograph McLaren.

Richard Mille RM 11-03 Automatic Flyback Chronograph McLaren

The Flyback Chronograph McLaren, a beautiful blend of the “DNA” of both Richard Mille and McLaren, is fitted with many little details reminiscent of the road car such as the crown shaped like a lightweight rim.

The RM 11-03 up for auction is a real eye catcher because it is housed in a very light, ultra-strong Carbon TPT case with Quartz TPT in McLaren orange. It is powered by Richard Mille’s automatic Caliber RMAC3 featuring a flyback chronograph and annual calendar, meaning it only needs to be manually adjusted in February.

What makes this watch extra cool is that it is the prototype made before the model entered regular production. Prototypes rarely come up for sale, so the opportunity to get one from an esteemed brand like Richard Mille is rare to say the least!

And it is also of one of the Richard Mille’s coolest watches.

Subtle and deliberately less subtle: Zenith and Czapek

What I  always find especially interesting about Only Watch is the approach that each brand takes for its donated watch. Some are very subtle, often only playing with color, while others go all in and create a watch that is unique many different ways.

While one can argue that a subtle change in color perhaps doesn’t really warrant paying a considerable premium over the retail of the regular model, hence generating less money for the fight against Duchenne muscular dystrophy, this is too easy an argument.

Details matter in watch collecting, and even the subtlest details make a big difference in an object the size of a wristwatch, though perhaps in a more understated way, resulting in a truly remarkable watch.

Zenith El Primero A386 Only Watch

My personal favorite in this year’s auction is the Zenith El Primero A386, which the brand gave a baby blue-colored minute counter instead of the deep blue example from the regular white gold model. This shade of blue is Only Watch 2019’s theme color.

The watch is so on point that it’s unbelievable to me. For some, this small change might not be unique enough. But I think that especially El Primero enthusiasts will be excited, more so because many of the El Primero models (with the exception of the Nataf-era creations) are very understated.

I think that this hue, in particular on a men’s watch, is one that needs to be applied with extreme caution. Too much of it, or utilized in the wrong way, will quite quickly put the watch in less desirable aesthetic territories.

Yet quite a few brands are keen this year to push the envelope. This can also have an ulterior motive: as Only Watch is a charity auction where brands donate unique watches, they can use them as test cases to see how the market response might be to certain creations without the risk of getting burned.

That’s exactly what I feel Czapek has done with its donation to the auction. While this new brand is best known for its classic creations, the Faubourg de Cracovie with integrated chronograph caliber can easily count as its most sportive piece.

Czapek Faubourg de Cracovie Only Watch 2019

However, none of the Faubourg de Cracovie editions have gone as far as this one for Only Watch 2019 in terms of wild aesthetic: suddenly there is a black onyx dial with subdials in chalcedony, another semiprecious stone, captured in a black ADLC-coated titanium case.

While just from the description I shouldn’t like it, I do. Going high-tech on the case and entirely the opposite on a dial made of stone works wonders. Honestly, I hope that Czapek takes this Only Watch piece unique as a point of departure for some new additions to the regular collection.

Perfectly palatable: Girard-Perregaux Laureato Absolute Chronograph

When Girard-Perregaux introduced the Laureato Absolute Chronograph, I was not a fan. While I know that there is a demographic in the watch world that measures the success of a sports watch by its size, I already thought that the regular Laureato Chronograph was perfect the way it was.

Girard-Perregaux Laureato Absolute Chronograph for Only Watch 2019

Fortunately, the Laureato Absolute Chronograph is no poser, as highlighted by its 300-meter water resistance and the manufacture movement ticking inside its case.

While I love blue dials, I found GP’s regular-collection dark-blue dial in combination with a black PVD-coated titanium case a tad depressing.

This special Only Watch edition fixes just that as the dial is now charcoal black with powder-blue hour, minute, and chronograph second hands. As the rubber strap also now has a blue insert in the same shade, I think that Girard-Perregaux is on to something for summer 2020 – for me it makes the Laureato Absolute Chronograph a whole lot more palatable, and dare I say even a bit desirable.

Something vintage: Breguet and Speake-Marin

Two brands are actually bringing something old to Only Watch 2019.

For one, Breguet has created a Type 20 with a stunning brown dial and fitted it with a vintage Valjoux Caliber 235. This is historically correct as this movement family also powered the original Type XXs in the 1950s.

Breguet Type 20 Only Watch 2019

It is, of course, manual wind and fitted with a column wheel and a flyback complication. Breguet fortunately resisted the temptation to make the case size in today’s fashion, keeping it just perfect at 38.3 mm. The result is a chronograph that, in all its modesty, oozes style and exudes a sensational charm all its own.

Speake-Marin London Chronograph Only Watch Edition

Speake-Marin also utilizes a vintage Valjoux movement for its donation to the Only Watch auction: opting for a Valjoux 92, it is housed in a more modern-sized case measuring 42 mm in diameter and crafted in titanium.

As this independent brand’s heritage is only of recent making, it works here. That would not have worked for Breguet.

That’s also why Speake-Marin got away with a blue dial background on which the slightly raised black and white chronograph subdials offer an interesting contrast.

Going their own way: Singer and Louis Moinet

Singer respectfully ignores any color etiquette there might be for Only Watch and arrives with a reimagined Track 1 housed in a case made by GoS. This independent Swedish watchmaker uses the most incredible self-forged Damascus steel, which is what this Singer is clothed in, albeit with black PVD coating.

Singer Reimagined Track 1 Only Watch Edition

The black case with its refined texture goes perfectly with the black-and-gold dial. Orange hands highlight the chronograph functions, which take center stage here as the hours and minutes are indicated by two disks on the outer rim of the dial.

Louis Moinet also walks to its own beat, doing what it does best here: a dazzling watch that is unlike any other. As the namesake of the brand is also the original inventor of the chronograph, the Memoris highlights the fact by providing an insight into how this complication works right on the front of the watch.

Louis Moinet Memoris Only Watch

Unique for this Memoris is a plate of aventurine placed deep in the movement so that when you look through the parts that make the chronograph work it’s like you are staring into space.

Because the emphasis is on the chronograph function, the hours and minutes play second fiddle on a subdial at 6 o’clock, though nobody probably minds as they do so against a backdrop of blue lacquer over guilloche.

Taking blue to the next level: Montblanc 1858 Split-Second Chronograph

Montblanc sends a stunning blue-dialed 1858 Split-Second Chronograph to Only Watch 2019. It gets even cooler because this blue dial is agate, a semiprecious stone, whose color graduates from lighter in the center to darker around the perimeter.

Montblanc 1858 Split-Second Chronograph Only Watch

The use of semiprecious stone seems to be a modest mini-trend among the chronographs in this edition of Only Watch. There is also a second trend, as this Montblanc’s case made of titanium, shows.

I could imagine quite a few people feeling a bit sad that this 1858 Split-Second Chronograph it is not a regular production model, or even a limited edition, instead of a unique piece.

Not only is the blue dial stunning, but Montblanc also highlights it perfectly with red details and white printing. The cherry on top is the MB16.31 monopusher chronograph caliber that Montblanc makes in its own Villeret-based manufacture.

It’s not only about the watch, it’s about who you meet with the watch

For this year’s edition of Only Watch, Jacob & Co. decided to do more than just donate a watch; the jewelry brand joined forces with brand ambassador and soccer superstar Lionel Messi.

Jacob & Co. Epic X Chrono Messi Only Watch Special Edition

Clothing the Epic X Chrono in Only Watch-signature colors, the brand also set the bezel with 36 baguette-cut blue sapphires. Of course, this latter element can only be seen as a must as Jacob & Co. has “carved out” quite a reputation for itself with gemstone-encrusted watches.

One of the nice things about this watch is that the person who wins it at auction will not only get the unique timepiece but also a unique experience: he or she will get a chance to meet Lionel Messi, talk with him, and have a picture taken together.

While this is not particularly what Only Watch is about, it does add another desirability factor that can only reflect positively on the price of the auction lot. And the more money raised, the closer we will get in finding a cure for the terrible disease that is Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

For more information, please visit www.onlywatch.com

Quick Facts RM 11-03 Automatic Flyback Chronograph McLaren
Case: 49.94 x 44.5 x 16.23 mm, Carbon TPT and Quartz TPT
Movement: automatic Caliber RMAC3, base plate and bridges in grade 5 titanium, 4 Hz/28,800 vph frequency; power reserve 55 hours, variable-geometry rotor
Functions: hours, minutes, subsidiary seconds: annual calendar with large date and month, flyback chronograph
Auction estimate: $220,000 – $250,000 / €198,000 – €225,000 / 220,000 – 250,000 Swiss francs

Quick Facts Breguet Type 20 Only Watch 2019
Case: 38.3 x 13.9 mm, stainless steel
Movement: manually wound Valjoux Caliber 235, column-wheel chronograph with flyback function, 45-hour power reserve, 21,600 vph/3 Hz frequency
Functions: hours, minutes, seconds; flyback chronograph
Limitation: one unique piece
Auction estimate: $35,000 – $50,000 / €31,000 – €45,000 / 35,000 – 50,000 Swiss francs

Quick Facts Zenith El Primero A386 Only Watch
Case: 38 x 12.6 mm, white gold
Movement: automatic Caliber El Primero 400, 5 Hz/36,000 vph frequency, column wheel chronograph, 50-hour power reserve
Functions: hours, minutes, seconds; date, chronograph
Limitations: unique piece
Remark: lifetime warranty and maintenance
Auction estimate: $19,900 – $29,900 / €18,000 – €27,000 / 19,900 – 29,900 Swiss francs

Quick Facts Czapek Faubourg de Cracovie Only Watch 2019 – Courage Every Second
Case: 41.5 x 13.9 mm, ADLC-coated titanium
Dial: onyx and chalcedony
Movement: automatic Caliber SXH3 (Vaucher), 5 Hz/30,600 vph frequency; power reserve 65 hours, column wheel chronograph, column wheel and vertical clutch, officially C.O.S.C. chronometer certified
Functions: hours, minutes, seconds; chronograph
Limitation: one unique piece
Estimate: $24,000 – $36,000 / €22,000 – €32,000 / 24,000 – 36,000 Swiss francs

Quick Facts Girard Perregaux Laureato Absolute Chronograph for Only Watch
Case: 44 x 14.65 mm, black DLC-coated titanium
Movement: automatic Caliber GP03300-1058 with 54-hour power reserve
Functions: hours, minutes, seconds; date, chronograph
Limitations: unique piece
Auction estimate: $13,000 – $16,000 / €12,000 – €14,000 / 13,000 – 16,000 Swiss francs

Quick Facts Speake-Marin London Chronograph Only Watch Edition
Case: 42 mm, titanium
Movement: manually wound Caliber Valjoux 92, 40-hour power reserve, 2.5 Hz/18,000 vph frequency
Functions: hours, minutes, seconds; chronograph
Limitations: unique piece
Auction estimate: $18,000 – $30,000 / €16,000 – €27,000 / 18,000 – 30,000 Swiss francs

Quick Facts Singer Reimagined Track 1 Only Watch Edition
Case: 43 x 15 mm, titanium
Movement: automatic AgenGraphe column wheel chronograph, 60-hour power reserve, automatic winding with peripheral rotor under the dial
Functions: hours and minutes on disks; central coaxial chronograph displaying jumping hours (to 60 hours), jumping minutes, and seconds
Limitation: unique piece
Auction estimate: $45,000 – $55,000 / €40,000 – €49,000 / 45,000 – 55,000 Swiss francs

Quick Facts Louis Moinet Memoris Only Watch
Case: 46 mm, titanium
Dial: aventurine plate underneath the visible chronograph assembly, lacquered guilloche hour and minute subdial
Movement: automatic Caliber LM79, 4 Hz/28,800 vph frequency, column wheel chronograph
Functions: hours, minutes; three-counter chronograph
Limitation: unique piece
Auction estimate: $30,000 – $40,000 / €27,000 – €36,000 / 30,000 – 40,000 Swiss francs

Quick Facts Montblanc 1858 Split-Second Chronograph Only Watch 2019
Case: 44 x 13.15 mm, titanium
Movement: hand-wound manufacture Caliber MB M16.31 with monopusher column wheel chronograph, 2.5 Hz/18,000 vph frequency; power reserve 50 hours
Functions: hours, minutes, seconds; monopusher chronograph, tachymeter scale
Limitation: one unique piece
Estimate: €42,000 – €48,000 / $40,000 – $45,000 / 42,000 – 48,000 Swiss francs

Quick Facts Jacob & Co. Epic X Chrono Messi “Only Watch” Special Edition
Case: 47 x 15 mm, titanium and white gold with 36 baguette-cut blue sapphires
Movement: automatic Caliber JCAA05, column wheel chronograph
Functions: hours, minutes, seconds; chronograph
Limitations: unique piece
Auction estimate: $70,000 – $100,000 / €63,000 – €90,000 / 70,000 – 100,000 Swiss francs

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