Brand: Hublot | Model: Classic Fusion Tributo Yellow Gold | Reference: 262.VX.1130.RX.MDM | Category: Heritage Reissue / Gold Dress Watch | Release Year: 2026
Last updated: October 21, 2026
The Hublot Classic Fusion Tributo (ref. 262.VX.1130.RX.MDM) rebuilds Carlo Crocco's 1980 original, the first gold watch on a rubber strap, in a 38mm 18k yellow gold case with an index-free black dial and gold "MDM" signature. The original's quartz movement gives way to Hublot's in-house HUB1711 automatic, priced at $30,900.
In 1980, Carlo Crocco unveiled a watch called "Hublot" at the Basel Fair under the MDM Genève name, which stood for Marie Daniel Montre. It paired a gold case with a natural rubber strap, something no luxury watch had done, and used a porthole bezel with twelve screws in place of hour markers. That pairing became Hublot's "Art of Fusion" and the foundation of the Big Bang and Classic Fusion. Forty-six years later, the Classic Fusion Tributo returns to the source. The yellow gold version is the purist's choice and the closest to the original. The case grows modestly from 36mm to 38mm and is 9.5mm thick, with polished and satin-finished 18k yellow gold. The twelve H-shaped bezel screws are polished titanium. The matte black lacquered dial has a subtle charcoal effect, no indices and a date at 3 o'clock, exactly where it sat in 1980. A gold "MDM" at 6 o'clock honors Crocco's MDM Genève signature and his Main Dans la Main Foundation, founded in 1998. Hublot is donating CHF 100,000 to the foundation to mark the launch. The real change is inside. The original ran on quartz; the Tributo uses the HUB1711, a Manufacture self-winding calibre with 185 components, beating at 4Hz with about 50 hours of power reserve. Through the sapphire caseback, an open-worked 22k yellow gold rotor shaped like the Hublot "H" carries the gold through to the movement. Hublot deliberately left off its One Click strap system to preserve the original's DNA, so the black lined rubber strap meets exposed lugs and closes with a deployant buckle in 18k gold and black-plated steel and titanium. A screwed crown provides 100m of water resistance, and the watch carries Hublot's 5+5 warranty. A white gold version (ref. 262.WX.6870.RX.MDM) with a black onyx dial is offered at the same price.
The Tributo is the most faithful modern recreation of the watch that founded Hublot, and the yellow gold reference is the one tied most directly to the 1980 original. Vintage MDM Hublots have steadily risen in value on the secondary market, and the Tributo adds an in-house automatic, a 22k gold rotor and the gold-and-rubber story that defines the brand. It is not announced as a limited edition, so short-term premiums are unlikely, but as Hublot's official tribute to its origins it should hold value well among heritage-minded collectors.
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