In New York, a Phillips watch auction "Winning Icons - Legendary Watches of the 20th Century" was held in cooperation with Bacs & Russo. Most of the bets and expectations of the public were related to Lot # 8, the Rolex Daytona Ref. 6239. The chronograph from the personal collection of Hollywood actor and race car driver Paul Newman was estimated at $ 1 million, but the result was many times higher than the estimate: the total cost was $ 17,752,500.
Newman's Rolex, released in 1963, had a memorable appearance: a cream-colored panda dial with contrasting chronograph counters, red Daytona lettering and a red minute scale on the outer bezel (in the 1980s this type of dial was called Paul Newman Daytona). The back of the steel case is engraved with the wish "Drive Me Carefully" from the actor's wife Joan Woodworth. She gave him this watch in 1972, when the renowned actor and owner of "the bluest eyes in the history of cinema" was just starting his racing career. The hype around the Rolex Oyster Cosmograph Daytona Ref. 6239 is also related to the fact that the watch was first put up for public auction - before that it belonged to James Cox, the boyfriend of Newman's daughter Nell. Part of the proceeds from sales will go to a charity fund named after her.
Until this day, the record for the cost of Rolex belonged to the unique historic Ref. 6062 Bao Dai, sold in May this year at Phillips for more than $ 5 million, and the most expensive watch was considered to be a steel Patek Philippe Ref. 1,518, sold for $ 11.2 million at the same Phillips auction a year ago.>