Jackie Stewart's Watches: A Rolex Life, From Day-Date to Daytona

The watches of Jackie Stewart are a one-brand story. Every watch we could source is a Rolex : a yellow-gold Day-Date bought in 1966, Daytonas tied to his Monaco Grand Prix wins, a steel GMT-Master he still wears, and a gold King Midas reportedly given for his first world title. This is a thin subject on references and prices, because Stewart rarely names them and the brand has not published them. This guide sets out what he has said, what auction houses have documented and where the accounts disagree.

Who wears what: quick reference

The first Rolex (1966)

Stewart's own account is the main source. He says he bought a yellow-gold, 18-carat Day-Date with a President bracelet in Houston in May 1966, and that owning one meant he had “made it”. He told Haute Time he bought it after qualifying well at the Indianapolis 500. Collecting Cars adds that team owner John Mecom had the dial swapped for a full diamond one, and Stewart had it changed back because he was not “much of a diamond guy”. Monochrome records the same dial story and a $25,000 payment.

Sources disagree on what paid for it. Haute Time's interviewer says he bought it just after winning at Indianapolis, but he did not win the 1966 race: he led before a mechanical failure and was Rookie of the Year. Monochrome and Stewart himself say qualifying. Watchonista says the money came from his first Monaco win. We treat the qualifying account as his own.

Joining Rolex, and the King Midas (1968 to 1969)

Rolex calls its ambassadors Testimonees. Collecting Cars says CEO André Heiniger signed Stewart on April 28, 1968, the same day as Arnold Palmer and Jean-Claude Killy, and Loupiosity, Watchonista and Wikipedia's 2018 anniversary point to 1968. A Phillips lot essay and Haute Time give 1969. Stewart told Monochrome that Mr. Heiniger gave him a King Midas for his first world championship, which Collecting Cars also reports. He describes it as all gold with a small gold dial and “very heavy”, more like jewellery.

Two details conflict. Collecting Cars names the CEO André Heiniger and Watchonista says Patrick Heiniger. Watchonista credits Gérald Genta with the design; we could not find Rolex confirming that, so we treat it as reported.

Monaco and the Daytonas (1966 to 2016)

Stewart names the Daytona among his favourites. He has told interviewers one was awarded for winning at Monaco and that it reminds him he was “good enough and fast enough to win it”. Monochrome and Ape to Gentleman date it to his 1971 Monaco win. Senatus quotes him saying it was given in Monaco in the late 1960s, and Collecting Cars says one came with each of his three wins there. In 2016 Rolex gave him a new Daytona for the 50th anniversary of his first Monaco win, engraved on the caseback “1966 – 2016 50th Anniversary 1st F1 Win Monaco GP”.

Stewart won at Monaco in 1966, 1971 and 1973 per Wikipedia, so a “late sixties” award can only refer to 1966 and we cannot match it to a watch. The Daytona's reference, and so its age, is not given in any source we read. The engraved 2016 watch is the only Daytona we can identify.

The GMT-Master years (1969 to today)

Stewart says the steel GMT-Master is the watch he wears most. Monochrome notes one in photographs from 1969 and says he still owns it. In a 2015 interview he named the gold Day-Date, the Daytona and the GMT-Master as favourites, and wears the GMT-Master around the house. Collecting Cars puts his collection at over two dozen Rolexes, while Stewart himself said about 14, some won and some in his wife's wardrobe. He also had the left sleeves of his shirts shortened so his watch shows.

Stewart also tells of a gold GMT-Master stolen from his hotel in Malaysia in 1996 while he slept by the pool. By his account the thief was traced to a flight to Hong Kong and Interpol met him at the gate, and the watch was returned. That story comes from his Haute Time interview alone.

Context: ambassador, family and the gaps

An ambassador for decades. Rolex became the official timepiece of Formula 1 in 2013. In June 2016 Rolex's Arnaud Boetsch described Stewart as part of the Rolex family for “almost fifty years”. Stewart told Collecting Cars that he kept his place by over-delivering. He is not the only name from this world; see our Rush watches guide and the Le Mans watches guide for racing on film.

The family. Stewart's wife Helen wore a Lady Datejust in a 1973 Rolex advertisement, per Loupiosity. He told Monochrome that his sons received Tudors rather than Rolexes at around 11 or 12, and that his grandchildren now wear them. His son Paul gave a GMT-Master II 116710LN to Eric Clapton in 2009 as thanks for playing on “Fly Free”, a song written as a 70th-birthday gift for Jackie; it made HK$495,300 at Phillips Hong Kong. That watch was never Jackie's.

What is missing. We found no Stewart-named Rolex, no reference numbers for his old Daytona, Day-Date or steel GMT-Master, and no price for the Day-Date. We did not read Rolex's own Stewart page, which returned an error. See our Rolex Daytona, Rolex Day-Date and Rolex GMT-Master histories, and our Tudor brand page for the sister brand.

Related guides. For other famous wearers see the famous people watches hub.

Myths and mix-ups, corrected

• “Stewart has been a Rolex ambassador since 1969.” Two sources say 1969 (a Phillips lot essay and Haute Time). Collecting Cars, Loupiosity, Watchonista and Wikipedia's anniversary point to 1968, and Collecting Cars gives April 28, 1968.
• “He bought his first Rolex after winning the Indy 500.” He did not win in 1966. By his own words he bought it after qualifying well, and he was Rookie of the Year.
• “His Monaco Daytona dates from 1971.” Two outlets say so, but Stewart is quoted as saying the late 1960s. Wikipedia lists Monaco wins in 1966, 1971 and 1973. No source gives its reference.
• “Rolex made a Jackie Stewart Daytona.” We found no such edition. The documented piece is a one-off 2016 gift engraved for the 50th anniversary of his first Monaco win.
• “The King Midas was designed by Gérald Genta.” Watchonista says so, but we found no confirmation from Rolex, and sources give the CEO's first name as both André and Patrick.

Sources

Haute Time (Stewart interview, 2015; Monaco anniversary piece, June 2016); Monochrome (Stewart interview, June 30, 2016); Collecting Cars; Ape to Gentleman; Loupiosity; Senatus; MBWorld; Watchonista; Passion Horlogere; Wikipedia; Phillips lot pages for the 1675 GMT-Master, the King Midas and the Clapton GMT-Master II; Bob's Watches for the 116500LN market range. We could not open Rolex's own Stewart page, WatchPro or Rolex retail pages, so no current retail prices are quoted. Prices are in US dollars unless marked, and the Swiss franc and Hong Kong dollar results are shown in their own currencies.