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WATCH YOUR TIME |
Rolex had held the official timekeeper role for Formula
1 for over a decade but ended its involvement to focus on
its “first love”: endurance racing, particularly at Daytona,
Florida. The connection was formalised in 1992 when
the ‘Crown’ brand became title sponsor of the most
prestigious race in American motorsport, the 24 Hours
of Daytona. First run years earlier on the hard-packed
sands of the local beaches, the event moved in 1959 to
the city’s International Speedway and was renamed the
Rolex 24 At Daytona. The winner not only earns glory but
also receives something money can’t buy, a personalised
Rolex chronograph. Before adopting the Daytona name,
Rolex had launched its racing-focused professional time-
piece under the Cosmograph label. This radically modern
chronograph reinvented the brand’s traditional design
codes, with functional innovations such as high-con-
trast displays and the tachymeter scale moved from the
dial to the bezel. It’s a watch that became legendary,
not through deliberate planning but almost by chance,
something the company itself only recognised in hind-
sight. It’s the kind of serendipitous success story unique
to watchmaking, where a product catches on organically,
by word of mouth or coincidence. The Daytona’s case is
particularly famous: Paul Newman, who wore a “tropi-
cal” dial Cosmograph, began racing cars in the late ’60s
and starred in the 1969 film Winning. Iconic stills from
the time sparked a craze for the Daytona-Paul Newman
version that every collector now knows. For the public,
it’s a watch synonymous with trend, status, and multi-
million-dollar auctions.
In TAG Heuer’s case, cinema also played its part. The
Monaco model gained cult status after Steve McQueen
wore it in the 1971 film Le Mans, with real race scenes
performed by Jo Siffert, then sponsored by Heuer.
But no overview of racing’s watch icons would be
complete without Richard Mille. Its credentials go far
beyond motorsport-inspired aesthetics. The brand col-
laborates directly with teams and drivers from elite out-
fits like Ferrari and McLaren to create dedicated time-
pieces. From the ultra-thin RM UP-01 to the highly
complex RM 43-01 for Ferrari, and the powerful RM 65-01
for McLaren, these watches exemplify the brand’s race-
bred engineering.
Other notable partnerships in Formula 1 include
Girard-Perregaux with Aston Martin, H. Moser & Cie.
with Alpine Motorsports, and IWC with Mercedes-AMG
Petronas. Alongside these high-octane collaborations are
events that celebrate automotive heritage and design,
regularity rallies and concours d’élégance, chief among
them being the Mille Miglia, supported by Chopard,
and the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este, backed by
A. Lange & Söhne.
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1. IWC Pilot’s Watch Chronograph APXGP. IWC Schaffhausen
celebrates its partnership with the Apple Original Films F1® movie,
released this summer, with three chronographs in the colours
of the fictional APXGP racing team, including two in steel (43
or 41 mm diameter). They are driven by the manufacture calibre
69385IWC, visible through a sapphire case back, also display-
ing day and month.
2. ZENITH Chronomaster Sport. With a blue ceramic case to mark
Zenith’s 160th anniversary, this 41 mm chronograph, powered by
the El Primero 3600 calibre, stands out through its historical tri-
colour counters. Limited edition of 160 pieces.
3. PATEK PHILIPPE 5370R-001. Highly prized among connois-
seurs, this split-seconds chronograph, housing the manual-wind-
ing CHR 29-535 PS calibre visible through a sapphire back, boasts
7 patented innovations. For the first time, it is presented in a rose
gold case with a magnificent Grand Feu enamel dial.
4. RICHARD MILLE RM 65-01 McLaren W1. An automatic
split-seconds chronograph from Richard Mille’s fourth collabo-
ration with McLaren. Inspired by the W1, the British manufactur-
er’s latest supercar, it features an impressive 43.84 x 49.94 mm
Carbon TPT® case. Limited edition of 500 pieces.
5. OMEGA Speedmaster Moonphase Meteorite. Forever linked
to space exploration, the Speedmaster collection welcomes two
new 43 mm steel models, each displaying moon phases for both
hemispheres on meteorite dials, one black and the other grey. They
introduce the manual calibre 9914, visible through the case back.
6. FREDERIQUE CONSTANT Classics Vintage Rally Healey
Automatic. The collection referencing Austin Healey sports cars
welcomes three new models, including a 42 mm steel chrono-
graph. The watch features a sapphire case back and is limited
to 1,888 pieces.
7. LONGINES Legend Diver. Iconic to the brand since 1959, the
Legend Diver collection expands with a notable blue-dial model
on a rubber strap. Its 39 mm steel case, water-resistant to 300
metres, houses an exclusive COSC-certified automatic calibre.
8. TAG HEUER Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph | F1®.
TAG Heuer marks its return to Formula 1 circuits with, among
others, this striking Monaco in white ceramic and sapphire crys-
tal, sized at 43 x 43 mm, revealing the automatic TH81-00 calibre
beneath a translucent dial and through the case back.
SPORT