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boxerSpotted May 2023

Boxer Canelo Álvarez spotted wearing a Rolex

boxer Canelo Álvarez spotted wearing a Rolex 128238
Who & what: Rolex Day-Date 128238 18k Yellow Gold Green Diamond Dial – Canelo Álvarez Spotted

Canelo Álvarez, fresh off claiming the WBO super-middleweight title and cementing his status as one of boxing's pound-for-pound elite, was recently seen wearing a Rolex Day-Date 128238 — the 36mm yellow gold iteration of Rolex's most storied complication watch. The sighting is notable not just for the celebrity attached to it, but for the specific dial configuration chosen.

The Rolex Day-Date 128238 sits at the heart of the Day-Date 36 collection, powered by the in-house Calibre 3255 — a movement Rolex introduced in 2015 and gradually rolled across the Day-Date line. The 3255 offers a 70-hour power reserve, a Chronergy escapement for improved energy efficiency, and Rolex's proprietary Parachrom hairspring. It represents a meaningful leap over the long-serving Calibre 3155. The 36mm yellow gold case is water resistant to 100 metres and features a domed sapphire crystal with cyclops lens over the date.

The dial on Álvarez's ref. 128238 is the detail that draws the eye. The green ombré sunburst graduation deepens toward the periphery, providing a dramatic backdrop for the mixed diamond hour markers — brilliant-cut diamonds across most positions, with baguette-cut diamonds at 6 and 9 o'clock adding geometric contrast. This dial configuration is not standard catalogue; it represents one of Rolex's higher-specification dial options, elevating the retail price accordingly. The watch is completed on the President bracelet — the three-link concealed-clasp bracelet Rolex developed specifically for the Day-Date at its 1956 debut, and one that remains exclusive to this model and the Lady-Datejust 28.

For collectors, the Day-Date 128238 in yellow gold occupies a particular position: it is the watch that heads of state, CEOs, and champions have worn for nearly seven decades. The green dial references a colour Rolex has embraced with increasing confidence since the Submariner 116610LV brought the shade into mainstream collector consciousness.

Álvarez, who has been seen wearing Rolex, Audemars Piguet, and Patek Philippe across various public appearances, clearly gravitates toward watches that carry institutional weight. The Day-Date 128238 retails at $36,150 in this configuration — and on the grey market, demand for green-dial precious-metal Day-Dates continues to outpace supply.

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