• The Rolex GMT-Master II “Pepsi” is officially gone after years of discontinuation rumours.
• The difficult-to-produce red-and-blue Cerachrom bezel may have played a part in the Pepsi’s exit.
• Rare stone dials, precious-metal watches and diamond-pavé configurations also leave the catalogue.
• Rolex clears the decks as it celebrates 100 years of the Oyster with a surprise-filled 2026 lineup.

The new Rolex releases may have taken most of the attention at Watches and Wonders 2026, but once the excitement settled, we noticed a few familiar faces had quietly disappeared from the catalogue. The biggest of them all? The GMT-Master II “Pepsi”, a watch that has spent years sitting near the top of collector wish lists and, after plenty of rumours about its future, is officially gone.

Yesterday, Rolex unveiled a fresh round of releases at Watches and Wonders 2026, celebrating 100 years of the Oyster with new watches, new dials and plenty of surprises. But making room for the new often means saying goodbye to a few old favourites, and this year there are some very big names on the discontinued list.

So, while everyone is still talking about what Rolex just introduced, we’re taking a look at the watches that quietly left the collection in 2026.

• Brand: Rolex
• Model: GMT-Master II “Pepsi”
• Reference: 126719BLRO / 126719BLRO ‘Blue’ / 126710BLRO / 126710BLRO ‘Jubilee’
• Diameter: 40 mm
• Thickness: 12 mm
• Material: Oystersteel
• Dial: Meteorite / Blue / Black / Black
• Calibre: Manufacture Rolex 3285
• Power Reserve: 70 Hours
• Water-Resistance: 10 Bar (100 metres, 330 feet)

Well, the rumours were right. The first Rolex collection to be officially discontinued is the GMT-Master II “Pepsi” for 2026, bringing an end to both the Oystersteel ref. 126710BLRO and the white gold ref. 126719BLRO. That means the steel Pepsi on Oyster and Jubilee bracelets have disappeared from the collection, along with the blue and meteorite-dial versions in white gold, making this one of the biggest losses from Rolex’s 2026 catalogue.

The red-and-blue bezel dates back to the original GMT-Master of 1955, when Rolex developed the watch for airline crews travelling long distances and crossing multiple time zones. The two-colour bezel helped distinguish daytime from nighttime hours when reading the additional time zone, so long before collectors gave it the “Pepsi” nickname, that famous colour combination was there for a very practical reason.

The modern Pepsi returned to Oystersteel in 2018 with the GMT-Master II ref. 126710BLRO, complete with its red-and-blue Cerachrom bezel and calibre 3285. Making that bezel, however, has never been straightforward, with Rolex itself admitting that bringing red and blue together on a single ceramic component was extremely difficult and required years of research. Production difficulties surrounding the bezel have been linked to discontinuation rumours for years, although Rolex has never officially confirmed that this was the reason for retiring the Pepsi in 2026.

We knew the rumours had been getting louder, but seeing the Pepsi actually disappear from the Rolex catalogue still feels a little strange, especially when it remained one of the most wanted GMT-Master II models right up until the end. Whether Rolex brings the red-and-blue bezel back under a new reference in the future is anyone’s guess, but knowing how the Crown likes to play the long game, we certainly wouldn’t rule it out. For now, though, goodbye Pepsi.

Every Rolex GMT-Master II “Pepsi” Discontinued in 2026:

• 126710BLRO-0001 (Steel with Jubilee bracelet)
• 126710BLRO-0002 (Steel with Oyster bracelet)
• 126719BLRO-0002 (White gold with meteorite dial)
• 126719BLRO-0003 (White gold with blue dial)

• Brand: Rolex
• Model: Submariner Date “Cookie Monster”
• Reference: 126619LB
• Diameter: 41 mm
• Thickness: 12.3 mm
• Material: 18KT White Gold
• Dial: Blue
• Calibre: Manufacture Rolex 3235
• Power Reserve: 70 Hours
• Water-Resistance: 30 Bar (300 metres, 1000 feet)

If the Pepsi was the sad goodbye of 2026, the Submariner Date ref. 126619LB was probably the bigger surprise, as Rolex quietly dropped the watch collectors know as the “Cookie Monster” after roughly six years in the collection. The nickname comes from its bright blue Cerachrom bezel and deep black dial, a colour combination that reminded collectors of the blue-and-black look of the famous Sesame Street character. Underneath the playful nickname, though, this was a serious Submariner, with a 41 mm case and Oyster bracelet made entirely from 18 ct white gold, the calibre 3235 offering a 70-hour power reserve, and 300 metres of water resistance. Rolex introduced this exact black-dial, blue-bezel, white-gold combination in 2020.

The Cookie Monster arrived in 2020 as the successor to the ref. 116619LB “Smurf”, which went all-in on blue with a matching blue dial and bezel, while the newer ref. 126619LB swapped the dial for a black one, giving the watch a slightly quieter look. We always liked that about it because, from a distance, you could easily mistake it for a steel Submariner until the weight of the white-gold case and bracelet gave the game away. With no white gold Submariner left in the current collection, we can’t help but wonder if Rolex is simply clearing the path for a new precious-metal Submariner in the future, although nothing has been confirmed just yet. For now, the Cookie Monster leaves a rather noticeable space in the Submariner family, and we have a feeling Rolex won’t leave it empty forever.

• Brand: Rolex
• Model: Datejust “Azzurro”
• Reference: 126300 / 126334
• Diameter: 41 mm
• Thickness: 11.7 mm
• Material: Oystersteel / Oystersteel & White Gold
• Dial: Blue
• Calibre: Manufacture Rolex 3235
• Power Reserve: 70 Hours
• Water-Resistance: 10 Bar (100 metres, 330 feet)

Blue dials are hardly unusual in the Datejust collection, but the Azzurro always had something a little different about it. Its lighter, almost icy shade of blue was paired with applied Roman numerals and a railway-style minute track around the edge, giving the watch a dressier look without straying into formal territory. The dial was offered across the ref. 126300 in Oystersteel and the ref. 126334 with its white gold fluted bezel, with both Oyster and Jubilee bracelet options available.

The Azzurro Roman dial has now been dropped for 2026 as Rolex moves the Datejust 41 in a different direction with its latest dial updates. Beneath that blue dial sat the manufacture calibre 3235, offering around 70 hours of power reserve, while the 41 mm Oyster case provided 100 metres of water resistance. We always thought the Azzurro was one of the more overlooked Datejust dials, especially when the Wimbledon and other blue configurations seemed to get most of the attention, but its softer colour and Roman numerals gave it a look of its own. With Rolex refreshing its dial choices for 2026, perhaps the Azzurro had simply reached the end of its run, though we suspect collectors may appreciate it a little more now that it is gone.

Every Rolex Day-Just 41 Azzurro Discontinued in 2026:

• Datejust 41 Ref. 126300-0015 (Steel, smooth bezel, white Roman dial, Oyster bracelet)
• Datejust 41 Ref. 126300-0016 (Steel, smooth bezel, white Roman dial, Jubilee bracelet)
• Datejust 41 Ref. 126300-0017 (Steel, smooth bezel, blue Roman dial, Oyster bracelet)
• Datejust 41 Ref. 126300-0018 (Steel, smooth bezel, blue Roman dial, Jubilee bracelet)
• Datejust 41 Ref. 126334-0023 (Steel, white gold fluted bezel, white Roman dial, Oyster bracelet)
• Datejust 41 Ref. 126334-0024 (Steel, white gold fluted bezel, white Roman dial, Jubilee bracelet)
• Datejust 41 Ref. 126334-0025 (Steel, white gold fluted bezel, blue Roman dial, Oyster bracelet)
• Datejust 41 Ref. 126334-0026 (Steel, white gold fluted bezel, blue Roman dial, Jubilee Bracelet)

• Brand: Rolex
• Model: Day-Date
• Reference: 128238-0071 
• Diameter: 36 mm
• Thickness: 11.7 mm
• Material: 18KT – Yellow Gold
• Dial: Turquoise
• Calibre: Manufacture Rolex 3255
• Power Reserve: 70 Hours
• Water-Resistance: 10 Bar (100 metres, 330 feet)

Three years is a pretty short life for a Rolex dial, especially one as memorable as this. Rolex unveiled its latest decorative-stone Day-Date 36 models in 2023, with turquoise joining the collection alongside carnelian and green aventurine. Yet the turquoise family quickly grew far beyond a single headline watch. Across platinum, yellow gold, white gold, and Everose gold configurations, with different diamond-set bezel and President bracelet options, Rolex offered a remarkable 17 Day-Date 36 references with turquoise dials. Fast-forward to 2026, and those turquoise-stone models have now joined the discontinued list, including the yellow-gold ref. 128238-0071 with its 36 mm case, calibre 3255, 70-hour power reserve, and 100 metres of water resistance. With rare stone and gem-set creations increasingly associated with Rolex’s quieter off-catalogue world, perhaps the Crown simply wants watches like these to feel a little harder to find again.

Every Rolex Day-Date 36 Turquoise Reference Discontinued in 2026:

• Ref. 128236-0011 (Platinum, fluted bezel)
• Ref. 128396TBR-0016 (Platinum, bezel with trapezoidal diamonds)
• Ref. 128239-0044 (White gold, fluted bezel)
• Ref. 128239-0045 (white gold, fluted bezel, diamond-set President bracelet)
• Ref. 128349RBR-0031 (White gold, bezel with round diamonds)
• Ref. 128349RBR-0032 (White gold, bezel with round diamonds, diamond-set President bracelet)
• Ref. 128399TBR-0011 (White gold, bezel with trapezoidal diamonds)
• Ref. 128238-0071 (Yellow gold, fluted bezel)
• Ref. 128238-0072 (Yellow gold, fluted bezel, diamond-set President bracelet)
• Ref. 128348RBR-0037 (Yellow gold, bezel with round diamonds)
• Ref. 128348RBR-0038 (Yellow gold, bezel with round diamonds, diamond-set President bracelet)
• Ref. 128398TBR-0014 (Yellow gold, bezel with trapezoidal diamonds)
• Ref. 128235-0064 (Everose gold, fluted bezel)
• Ref. 128235-0065 (Everose gold, fluted bezel, diamond-set President bracelet)
• Ref. 128345RBR-0064 (Everose gold, bezel with round diamonds)
• Ref. 128345RBR-0065 (Everose gold, bezel with round diamonds, diamond-set President bracelet)
• Ref. 128395TBR-0018 (Everose gold, bezel with trapezoidal diamonds)

• Brand: Rolex
• Model: Yacht-Master
• Reference: 126655-0005 / 268655-0019
• Diameter: 40 mm / 37 mm
• Thickness: 11.7 mm
• Material: 18-KT Everose Gold
• Dial: Diamond-Paved
• Calibre: Manufacture Rolex 2236
• Power Reserve: 55 Hours
• Water-Resistance: 10 Bar (100 metres, 330 feet)

Some Rolex watches were made to fly under the radar, but the diamond-pavé Yacht-Masters clearly missed that meeting. The Everose gold Yacht-Master 40 ref. 126655-0005 and 37 mm ref. 268655-0010 paired diamond-set dials with matte-black Cerachrom bezels and black Oysterflex bracelets, creating an unusual mix of sports watch and full-on jewellery that somehow worked. Both pavé dial references have now been discontinued for 2026, although the wider Everose gold Yacht-Master collection remains in place with more conventional dial options. We know these were never going to be for everyone, but that was part of their charm. With Rolex removing both sizes at once, the Yacht-Master collection has suddenly become a little less flashy.

Every Rolex Yacht-Master Diamond Pavé Dial Discontinued in 2026:

• Ref. 126655-0005
• Ref. 268655-0019

We have mixed feelings about Rolex’s discontinued watches for 2026, because while we understand that making room for new releases means a few old favourites have to go, losing the Pepsi still hurts the most. The GMT-Master II’s red-and-blue bezel has been tied to the collection for decades, and considering how difficult the watch was already to buy at retail, its disappearance only makes it feel more special. If we had to save one watch from this year’s discontinued list, the Pepsi would get our vote without much debate.

At the same time, we like that Rolex isn’t simply holding onto every popular watch forever and playing it safe. The Crown has used the Oyster’s 100th anniversary to introduce a surprisingly colourful 2026 lineup, from the centenary Oyster Perpetual 41 to the green ombré Datejust 41, and the catalogue feels fresher because of it. Still, we wouldn’t be shocked to see one or two of these familiar names return in another form down the road, and if a new red-and-blue GMT ever appears again, you can be sure we’ll be watching very closely and everybody else too.