In 1983, watch manufacturer Cartier introduced the Cartier Challenge in which a special Cheich watch was presented to competitors who could win their class at the Paris–Dakar Rally in back-to-back years. While such a feat has been achieved multiple times in recent years (most recently Dmitry Sotnikov in 2021/22 in the Trucks), the difficulty of the original Paris to Dakar route made the stakes much greater.
By the end of the challenge in 1986 due to Rally founder Thierry Sabine‘s death in a helicopter crash, only Gaston Rahier was able to complete it when he won the Bikes overall in 1984 and 1985. He received one of only four Cartier Cheichs, with two currently with Cartier (one for men and another for women; the latter is smaller and made of diamond rather than gold) while the fourth has been lost. Rahier, a three-time FIM Motocross World Champion, died in 2005 and ownership of the watch remained with his family.
As the only piece publicly available, Rahier’s family provided the Cheich to Sotheby’s for auction, which took place on 30 September. Described as “nothing less than an ultimate dream piece”, the watch was estimated to go for €200,000 to €400,000 but ultimately sold at €1.03 million.
The Cheich is made of 18k yellow gold with leather a strap. Surrounding the watch face in gold is a scarf design based on the keffiyeh headdress worn by the figure in the Dakar Rally logo.
This Cartier Cheich has been preserved in wonderful condition. The watch has spent the majority of its life in its presentation case. As much as Rahier’s family can remember, the watch was never serviced. The absence of watchmaker marks inside the case back and the very well-preserved movement tend to corroborate it.
“Gaston Rahier cherished this watch immensely,” reads the description from Sotheby’s. “For him, it was both a superb watch as well as the trophy crowning his incredible racing career. It was the piece that only he won and no one could ever win again. He kept it in its presentation case all his life and worn it only a few times on special occasions. After he passed away in 2005, his family continued to look after the Cartier Cheich, preciously keeping it in its presentation case.
“Today, almost forty years after the Cartier Challenge was won by Gaston, they decided to present this piece, one of the most important and beautiful Cartier wristwatches ever produced, to pay tribute to the legendary and beloved ‘little man with the giant reputation.'”
It was the second motorsport-related watch auctioned off in the past week. Two days prior, Michael Christensen placed the Rolex Daytona he received for winning the 2017 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona GTD class on auction and netted €88,800. Proceeds from Christensen’s auction went to Save the Children in Ukraine.
