Watch Paparazzi

Footballer Hakan Çalhanoglu spotted wearing Rolex

Hakan Çalhanoglu, one of Serie A's most influential midfielders and the captain of the Turkish national side, was recently spotted wearing the Rolex GMT-Master II ref. 126755SARU — a piece that sits at the absolute apex of the GMT-Master II family, pairing extreme gemstone ornamentation with one of watchmaking's most storied complications.

The GMT-Master II ref. 126755SARU measures 40mm in Rolex's proprietary 18k Everose gold, an alloy formulated in-house to resist fading over time. The bidirectional rotatable bezel — traditionally ceramic on modern GMT-Masters — is here replaced by a pavé arrangement of alternating sapphires and rubies, a nod to the iconic red-and-blue 'Pepsi' colour scheme rendered in precious stones. The four lugs are further set with baguette and round-cut diamonds. Beneath the black dial sits Rolex's calibre 3285, a self-winding movement beating at 28,800 vph with a 70-hour power reserve, a fast-setting independent GMT hand, and Rolex's Chronergy escapement for improved efficiency. The Jubilee bracelet in matching Everose gold completes the package.

Within the GMT-Master II collector world, the 126755SARU occupies a singular position. It is the gemstone variant that most directly references the tool-watch heritage of the line — born in 1955 for Pan Am pilots — while transforming that heritage into something closer to high jewellery. Production numbers are intentionally limited, and the reference rarely appears on the secondary market without a significant premium attached. It is emphatically not a subtle watch, and that is precisely its point.

Çalhanoglu, who joined Inter Milan in 2021 and has been instrumental in the club's recent Serie A and Champions League campaigns, has developed a public profile well beyond the pitch. His selection of the 126755SARU signals an appetite for pieces that command attention — a watch that functions as both a status statement and a genuine horological object of rarity.

At retail the Rolex GMT-Master II ref. 126755SARU is listed in the region of $150,000, but grey-market demand has pushed transaction prices to approximately $195,000, reflecting both the scarcity of gemset Rolex references and sustained appetite for high-jewellery sports watches among collectors and high-profile athletes alike.