Released in 1988, the Chopard Mille Miglia was inspired by the eponymous legendary car race. Beginning as far back as the 1920s when professional car racing was in its infancy, the Mille Miglia itself is an Italian 1000-mile endurance car race from Brescia to Rome and back that began in 1927 and abruptly ended in 1957 due to a tragic accident in which nine spectators, a driver, and his navigator all lost their lives. Following a 25-year hiatus, the race came back in 1982 as a time trial rally whereby only the same cars that were eligible during the original series of races could take part in it. Six years later, in 1988, Chopard successfully became the Mille Miglia's official timekeeper and released their eponymous collection of chronograph timepieces. Offered here we have the Mille Miglia GT XL Speed Black Edition ref. 68459 – a limited edition reference of just 1000 pieces. Boasting a 44mm DLC-coated stainless steel case, the ref. 68459 blends the Mille Miglia’s automotive use-case with Chopard’s famed sense for elaborate design, resulting in a timepiece that blurs the lines between jewelery and watchmaking. Indeed, it features a tachymeter bezel, a slightly contrasting grey minute track around its pitch-black dial, a date aperture at 3 o’clock and a trio of subdials for its chronograph that all combine to allow this timepiece to function as one might need it to if they were to take part in the Mille Miglia itself and time themselves or make calculations.

Watch is in overall very good condition. The DLC-coated steel case shows surface scratches, with the coating worn away or chipped in places on the lugs. There are some dings visible, including on the backside of the lugs. The tachymeter bezel also shows surface scratches. The display case back retains well-defined engravings around the edge. The original crystal with 12 and 6 on the underside is still present. The black carbon fibre dial remains excellent, and the hands are clean. It is fitted with a black rubber strap and a DLC-coated steel pin buckle showing surface scratches.

Inspired by motor sports in terms of its aesthetic design, but also inspired to be useful during motor sports too, the Mille Miglia collection is one of Chopard's most iconic modern sports watches, with its link to the legendary race apparent in almost every facet of its execution.