Precision is expected in a chronograph. What defines it is how convincingly it extends beyond timing into everyday wear. With Zenith, that idea has long been embedded in the CHRONOMASTER line. Built on the famed El Primero calibre, the collection expanded into the GPHG (Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève) award-winning CHRONOMASTER Sport. This model harmonises and refines performance and design into a singular entity. The latest expansion at Watches & Wonders 2026 continues along that line, with each variation approaching it from a different angle.
The CHRONOMASTER Sport remains anchored in its origins, where precision is already resolved and no longer seeks emphasis. The El Primero 3600 continues to dictate its cadence, marking 1/10th of a second through a central hand that completes its circuit in ten seconds. The shift lies in its expression. Steel is set against rose gold in a measured interplay that extends across the case and bracelet. The CHRONOMASTER’s emblematic tricolour chronograph counters persist as a constant, framed by a mother-of-pearl dial that catches and diffuses light as it passes. A folding clasp brings the watch to closure with the same sense of discipline that defines its construction.
The CHRONOMASTER Sport Skeleton approaches precision from a more revealing standpoint. Rather than containing the movement, the El Primero 3600SK SK articulates through the sapphire dial that subtly tints towards black at the periphery. The dial shifts between opacity and transparency, creating a layered visual field that changes with perspective. Architecture takes precedence over surface, as the blued column wheel and gear train emerge into view and shift into a frenetic cadence of high-frequency timekeeping when the chronograph is activated. The familiar tricolour counters remain, though the eye is drawn toward the exposed mechanics that surround them. A 100m water-resistant stainless steel case and ceramic bezel (either black or green) are natural options to meet the watch’s sporty disposition. After three years of intense research and development, Zenith debuts the patented ZENCLASP™ folding clasp on the stainless steel CHRONOMASTER Sport Skeleton models. Comprising 41 components, including 10 ceramic balls, the ZENCLASP™ ensures accurate locking and maintains the exact relative positioning of the internal elements over time. Other day-to-day improvements, including an on-the-fly micro-adjustment at 2.5mm increments up to 10mm, prove that the ZENCLASP™ is built on the same levels of precision as the El Primero, which translates mechanical intent into wearability.
When placed side by side, the two interpretations of the CHRONOMASTER Sport move along different lines of expression. One is defined by material contrast and composure, while the other by exposure and mechanical depth. Both arrive at the same outcome: performance is not confined to the movement but carried through every part of the watch.
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