Tudor and Visa Cash App Racing Bulls are now two seasons deep into their F1 partnership, and the brand has clearly settled into a rhythm: every spring, ahead of the Miami Grand Prix, Tudor drops a fresh livery-themed Black Bay Chrono.
Last year’s Carbon 25 went heavy on blue, but this year’s Carbon 26 trades it for yellow, mirroring the engine cowl on the VCARB 03 car the team is running this season. Everything else is more or less untouched, which is the part watch enthusiasts will be debating online.
Riding On the Coattails of Carbon 25
The Carbon 26 is built around the same 42mm carbon fiber composite case Tudor introduced last year, complete with a one-piece fixed tachymeter bezel (also carbon), PVD-coated titanium crown and pushers, and 200m of water resistance. Domed sapphire up top, screw-down everything where it counts. So far, so familiar.
What’s changed lives almost entirely on the dial. The “racing white” base carries over, but the blue accents from 2025 have been swapped for a hit of yellow that runs along the minute track, the sub-counter indices, and the date disc. There’s still a touch of red on the chronograph seconds hand and the depth rating, which is nice contrasting touch.
Carbon Fiber, All the Way Down
Both subdials are made of actual carbon fiber sheets, layered beneath the brass dial plate so the texture peeks through. The date window frame? That’s slso carbon. And the end-links connecting the strap to the case? Those are carbon, too.
The Engine Carries Over
Inside is the same Manufacture Calibre MT5813, Tudor’s column-wheel automatic chronograph co-developed with Breitling. You get a vertical clutch, silicon balance spring, 70 hours of power reserve, and COSC certification with Tudor’s stricter -2/+4 second daily tolerance applied on top.
The caseback gets a fun update as well: a checkered flag motif individually numbered out of 2,026, replacing last year’s straightforward Racing Bulls graphic. It’s a small touch, but a nice one.
About That Price
We have to address the elephant in the room. The Carbon 25 launched at $7,575. The Carbon 26 is asking $8,625. That’s a $1,050 jump for what is, by any honest read, the same watch in a new color suit. Watch prices have continued ascending at a pretty rapid rate over the last few years, and so far, that trend shows no signs of slowing down in 2026.
Spec Sheet
Brand: Tudor
Model: Black Bay Chrono “Carbon 26”
Reference: M79377KN-0003
Case Size: 42mm
Case Thickness: 14.3mm
Lug-to-Lug: 22mm lug width
Case Material: Carbon fiber composite (PVD titanium caseback, crown, pushers)
Movement: Manufacture Calibre MT5813 automatic chronograph
Power Reserve: 70 hours
Frequency: 4Hz (28,800 vph)
Water Resistance: 200m
Strap: Hybrid leather-rubber with carbon fiber end-links
Limited Edition: Yes, 2,026 pieces
Pricing & Availability
The Tudor Black Bay Chrono “Carbon 26” is available now, priced at $8,625, and limited to 2,026 individually numbered pieces.
Recap
Tudor Black Bay Chrono “Carbon 26”
Tudor reskins last year’s carbon fiber F1 chronograph in yellow VCARB 03 livery for the 2026 season, limited to 2,026 pieces and asking $1,050 more than its predecessor.
