Bulova and Shelby Join for a Racing Chronograph Inspired by the Iconic Daytona Coupe

One of the most historic American watch brands celebrates the 50th anniversary of a motorsports legend with this chromed-out watch.

Close-up of a silver metal watch band and part of a silver chronograph watch face with tachymeter markings on a reddish-brown background.

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By Sean Tirman

Published 57 minutes ago

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In 2025, Shelby American celebrated its 150th anniversary, in part, with a specialty chronograph built by Bulova, one of the most historic American watchmaking brands.

Admittedly, it was a bit unusual, adopting a format closer to classic stopwatches than wristwatches (although it makes perfect sense, considering Shelby’s racing history).

Now, the brands have teamed up once again to celebrate another anniversary with the Bulova Shelby Racer Chronograph 96K118.

Silver Bulova chronograph watch with tachymeter bezel and metal link bracelet on a rust-colored background. — The high-polish, full-stainless-steel case and mirror-polished dial capture the chrome look of the Daytona Coupe.

Chromed-out chronograph

Unlike the previous Bulova Shelby Racer Chronograph, which was draped in Shelby’s signature blue, this watch is decidedly more monochrome. That is, of course, entirely by design.

This watch is stylistically and functionally inspired by the Shelby Daytona Coupe. More specifically, it’s made to honor the 50th Anniversary Aluminum Edition Daytona Coupe, which, itself, is a celebration of Shelby’s 1965 FIA World Championship.

Silver chronograph wristwatch with black and white dial and brown leather strap on a wrist. — Along with the stainless steel bracelet, the watch also comes with a padded brown leather strap.

To honor the iconic GT race car, the watch gets tip-to-tail polish, replicating the car’s chromed-out appearance. The bracelet and case are high-polish stainless steel, while the dial gets an even more reflective mirror polish.

Furthermore, the chronograph subdials are modeled directly after the Daytona’s dash gauges, and the split finish on the bracelet hearkens to racing stripes. Secondarily, this styling makes everything more subtle, even the co-branding on the dial and subdials, which include Bulova’s tuning fork logo and Shelby’s signature cobra.

The watch features Bulova’s proprietary high-precision quartz movement, which resonates at a frequency of 262khz.

Bulova

Motorsport horology

The styling is only half of the connection between the Bulova watch and the Daytona Coupe, after which it is modeled. The other is in its functionality.

For this watch, like the one that preceded it, Bulova has appropriately chosen a racing chronograph style. Its trio of subdials and tachymeter bezel are staples of the automotive industry, assisting in measuring speed, timing and more. Truly, the connection between speed and time is the tie that binds motorsports and horology together and has been for generations.

Close-up of a person fastening a beige jacket with blue stripes, wearing a silver watch and a white helmet with a yellow sticker. — The watch comes in a special Shelby box with a 1/24 silver-plated Shelby Daytona Coupe model.

That’s all made possible by the movement within, a house-made Bulova Caliber NP20. As every millisecond is crucial in motorsport, this high-precision quartz (or HPQ) movement is the perfect companion for the watch’s overall styling.

The 40.5-millimeter cushion case also gets a shatter-resistant, antireflective sapphire crystal and commemorative caseback. And the whole thing comes in a special Shelby box with a 1/24 silver-plated Shelby Daytona Coupe model.

Person wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans holding a keychain with a silver vintage race car in the background. — With this watch, you can take a piece of automotive history with you wherever you go.

Availability and pricing

The Bulova Shelby Racer Chronograph 96K118 is now available on Bulova’s official site for $1,425 apiece.

Bulova

Bulova Shelby Racer Chronograph 96K118

Specs

Case Size	40.5mm
Movement	Bulova Caliber NP20
Water Resistance	100m

$1,425 at Bulova

About the Author: Sean Tirman is an associate editor at Gear Patrol who specializes in EDC, cannabis and outdoor gear.

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