Mixed martial artist Francis Ngannou spotted wearing a Rolex

Francis Ngannou, the Cameroonian-born heavyweight who knocked out Tyson Fury in a boxing crossover that stunned the combat sports world, was recently spotted on the wrist of a Rolex Deepsea Ref. 126660 in its signature D-Blue configuration — one of the most technically serious dive watches in Rolex's current catalogue.

The Rolex Deepsea Ref. 126660 is built around the Ringlock System, a three-component case architecture — a nitrogen-alloyed steel ring, a domed sapphire crystal 5.5mm thick, and a titanium caseback — that allows the 44mm Oyster case to withstand water pressure equivalent to a 3,900-metre depth. Inside runs the Calibre 3235, a manufacture movement featuring Rolex's Chronergy escapement, a paramagnetic nickel-phosphorus lever and escape wheel, and a 70-hour power reserve. It replaced the earlier Ref. 116660, which housed the older Calibre 3135, making the 126660 the definitive modern iteration of the Deepsea lineage.

The D-Blue dial is not merely aesthetic. Rolex introduced it in 2014 specifically to honour James Cameron's record-setting solo descent to the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench aboard the Deepsea Challenger submersible, with a Rolex experimental prototype strapped to the exterior. The gradient dial — transitioning from inky black to Rolex's vivid Cerachrom-matched blue — has since become one of the brand's most recognisable references among both divers and collectors. The text 'James Cameron' printed at 6 o'clock above 'DEEPSEA' adds a documentary weight that most watch dials simply cannot claim.

Ngannou's affinity for a watch of this physical scale is entirely coherent. The Deepsea's 44mm case and 17.7mm thickness make it one of the more imposing pieces in the Rolex lineup — a watch that reads boldly even on a large wrist. For an athlete who has competed at the absolute summit of heavyweight combat sports, the Deepsea's engineering credentials carry a certain symmetry.

At retail, the Rolex Deepsea Ref. 126660 D-Blue lists at approximately $12,250 USD. On the grey market, demand for the D-Blue variant consistently pushes values above retail, with current secondary prices tracking around $20,500 USD — a premium reflecting both the model's genuine technical pedigree and the sustained cultural cachet of the James Cameron association.