Can't Pair my Watch to New Phone

I have a new iPhone 13. I unpaired my Series 6 Watch from my old phone.

I updated my iPhone to iOS 16.2 and restarted. I restarted the Watch.

I'm getting an error that says "There is a problem with this Apple Watch that requires it to be updated or restored.

I'm asked if I want to "Recover Apple Watch". If I continue, the Watch supplies a code which I then input into the phone. And the watch restarts with the Apple logo which is centered in a circle that shows the watch being gradually updated as the circle completes clockwise. Before the circle closes, the Watch seems to reboot and then it shows the pairing symbol. And, I start all over again.

I'm not sure what is going on, but it appears that the Watch doesn't successfully Recover nor solve whatever "problem" the Phone experienced trying to pair to the Watch. Any suggestions?

Jon Snow (I know nothing)