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Mixed martial artist Khabib Nurmagomedov spotted wearing Jacob & Co

At a UFC press conference, retired lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov sat before cameras and microphones wearing a blacked-out Jacob & Co Epic X Chrono on his left wrist — a choice that reads as deliberate rather than accidental. The all-dark aesthetic of the watch matches the fighter's characteristically understated personal style, but the piece itself is anything but understated in its engineering ambitions.

The Epic X Chrono runs on Jacob & Co's JCAM19 automatic chronograph movement, a bi-compax layout that places the running small-seconds subdial at nine o'clock and the elapsed-minutes counter at three o'clock. The skeletonized dial architecture exposes the movement architecture through vertical pillar-style bridges, giving the watch a distinctly industrial transparency. The case measures 47mm in diameter, crafted from titanium and finished with a black DLC (Diamond-Like Carbon) coating that provides both scratch resistance and the matte stealth aesthetic visible on Khabib's wrist.

The black ceramic bezel and matching black rubber strap complete what Jacob & Co deliberately positions as a high-performance sports watch with haute horlogerie credentials. The Epic X line launched in the mid-2010s as the brand's answer to the skeletonized sports-chrono segment dominated by names like Richard Mille and Hublot — aggressive geometry, composite materials, and an unambiguous visual identity that reads clearly even at a distance.

Khabib Nurmagomedov retired from MMA in October 2020 with a perfect 29-0 record, and has since transitioned into a prominent role as a fight promoter and ambassador for the sport in Russia and the broader Muslim world. His public appearances have become increasingly formal, and his watch choices reflect a quiet upgrade in personal luxury — the Epic X Chrono at $26,000 retail is a meaningful statement from a former champion who rarely courts attention through possessions.

On the grey market, blacked-out references from Jacob & Co's Epic X family trade at modest discounts to retail, typically in the $18,000–$22,000 range depending on condition and box/papers. For collectors who want maximum visual impact at sub-$30,000, the Epic X Chrono in full black DLC titanium remains one of the more coherent propositions in Jacob & Co's catalog.