In recent years, basically since the introduction of the ceramic bezel on the steel edition (the 116500LN), the Daytona has become the hottest replica watches for sale in Rolex’s portfolio, but also remained a fairly conservative model, with a rather parsimonious use of colours. This hasn’t always been the case, though, and in the past, we’ve seen wild editions coming and going. But Rolex is changing and has had a strong focus on dial-making recently. Stones, jigsaw enamel, guilloché and bright colours have surfaced in all collections… And now it’s time for the Daytona, with the 126518LN and its bold turquoise lacquer dial, fake Rolex watches for men that we now know as the Daytona Alcaraz. A few months have passed since its launch, and I wanted to take a second look at it, see if my opinion has changed or not.
This year, even though 1:1 quality replica Rolex watches have been fairly discreet about it, was a great year for the Daytona, seeing the introduction of not one but 8 new references in total, including meteorite dials, a new white gold with blue dial, new chocolate brown editions and the John Mayer MKII with two-tone green dial. The only one that was openly advertised was the one we’ll be looking at today, the now so-called Alcaraz, because tennis player Carlos Alcaraz, winner of Roland Garros 2025, wore it during the prize ceremony. And I can vividly remember my initial reaction when seeing the official images of this new turquoise lacquered, yellow gold Daytona during the night of April 1st. And no, I am not going to publish the words that came out of my mouth at that moment. We still have certain rules in our editorial policy.
In short, my reaction (and basically the entire MONOCHROME team present in the room at that time) was strongly opinionated. Why would best selling Rolex replica watches use a turquoise-toned dial on a yellow gold Daytona? Well, it isn’t the first time Rolex has used such colours on the Daytona. Back in the 1990s and 2000s, we’ve seen almost the entire spectrum of the rainbow (and the full rainbow too…) used on the brand’s emblematic chronograph. Some would say that it was all about the naughty nineties, but in a world where a gold, mechanical chronograph is now priced the same as a small hatchback, everything has to be reconsidered. Rolex is thus going bolder, more colourful and less conservative, because the demand for such Swiss replica Rolex watches exist. And thankfully, classic options still exist too.
So let’s go back to our Daytona Alcaraz… What is it? Well, it is all about the dial. And what a dial, and what a combination of colours we’re talking about. Before we move into the details, I think that if this edition had been released in a white gold case, reactions would have been less dramatic, as we’d have been looking at a cold-on-cold scheme. Now, it’s bright-on-bright, and with two colours that, on paper, shouldn’t live together. Turquoise on yellow? Try to imagine that as an outfit. A yellow suit over a turquoise shirt…? Let’s avoid that. A turquoise 911 with a yellow leather interior? No thanks.
So what is this dial about? The base is, contrary to most coloured dials in the Daytona collection, lacquered. As such, it has a flat, almost enamel-like surface with a glossy but not shiny effect. It’s also a solid colour, without the shimmering effect of a dial that has been sunray-brushed – like it’s the case for the ice-blue platinum or the John Mayer. The colour is uniform, more subtle in the metal than I imagined at first. Also, for this new edition,best Rolex replica watches chose to have contrasting black counters, matching the black ceramic element of the bezel. It is a design that has a certain duality. It is, on the one hand, adding even more contrast and visual elements to a dial that’s already not known for being discreet, and yet, it softens the colour. And thanks to the updated applied markers in this generation of Daytona, the gold elements of the dial are more discreet than before.
Rolex Daytona Alcaraz yellow Gold Turquoise Lacquer Dial 126518LN review – 8Rolex Daytona Alcaraz yellow Gold Turquoise Lacquer Dial 126518LN review – 12
Thus, what’s felt on paper isn’t necessarily true in the metal. First and foremost, press images (most of the time 3D renderings) tend to dramatise colours and lack the reflections a watch has in reality. AAA+ Fake Rolex watches live in an environment, and the dial is covered by a sapphire crystal, which, despite the use of AR coating, tends to soften colours. In the same vein, while the case of this edition is yellow gold, it also carries a lot of black parts (bezel) and is worn on a black Oysterflex bracelet, so the gold tends to be far less present.
The rest of the cheap copy Rolex watches are everything we know from the updated Daytona, a change that occurred in 2023. It means an updated case that has retained slim dimensions – 40mm in diameter, 11.9mm in thickness (a rarity in the market of automatic chronographs) and 47.5mm in length – with a slightly different construction for the Cerachrom bezel, which is here framed by an 18k gold edge. Fit and finish? Excellent, as always with high quality replica Rolex watches. Comfort? Superb, mostly thanks to the Oysterflex bracelet – a unique construction with flexible metal blades overmoulded with black elastomer, and those flexible elements on the back that hug the wrist and that offset some of the weight of the 18k yellow gold case. And yes, it still has the screwed pushers that are not of the utmost practicality on a chronograph…
Inside the case is the latest evolution of Rolex’s automatic chronograph, the calibre 4131. This movement, using a column wheel and a vertical clutch, is now using the patented Chronergy escapement with its efficient geometry combined with a blue Parachrom hairspring. The rest is evolution more than revolution, a newly designed rotor on an (upgraded) ball bearing, and a single barrel capable of storing 72 hours of power reserve. The movement is, of course, Superlative Chronometer certified (both by the COSC and then by Rolex after casing) with an accuracy of -2/+2 seconds/day. And while it benefits from a more refined decoration than before (Rolex Côtes de Genève), it is still hidden behind a solid gold caseback. I do believe it is time for China Rolex fake watches to bring the sapphire back of the Le Mans and Platinum models to far more editions.
So, after seeing this Rolex Daytona Alcaraz Turquoise Lacquer Dial 126518LN in the metal, I have changed my mind about it. Yes, I somehow like it. Yes, I somehow feel a bit guilty about it. No, it is absolutely not in line with the name of this magazine, and I must admit that I feel a bit alone in the MONOCHROME team. But I like the audacity and the unexpected style of the perfect clone Rolex watches. And it could be that “guilty pleasure watch” that you don’t wear often but, in a certain way, makes you smile when wearing it. Would it be my first choice if I had to pick a Daytona? Absolutely not. I’m still very much after a classic steel model with a white dial. But I could see this turquoise edition coming as a solid third choice, after a blue dial/white gold version (not that I’m in the position of being able to acquire any of these anyway…)
The Rolex Daytona Yellow Gold Turquoise Lacquer Dial 126518LN retails for EUR 37,400. And yes, the hype is still real. The price is high. And the availability is tangential to zero. But it’s not best selling super clone Rolex watches for every taste, that’s for sure.
