Drive time: The 10 most iconic watches of the motoring world
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CNA Lifestyle
Drive time: The 10 most iconic watches of the motoring world
Fifty-fifty if you are not an F1 driver or supercar possessor, you can all the same habiliment a racing machine on your wrist. CNA Lifestyle looks at the most venerated timepieces associated with motorsports.
The Daytona International Speedway in Florida has hosted the Daytona 500 since 1959. (Photo: Rolex)
11 Sep 2022 06:30AM (Updated: 04 Jul 2022 09:31PM)
Carmakers and lookout marques have been closely intertwined ever since the first stopwatches were designed for machine dashboards in the 1930s. When major-league motor racing took off in the 1950s, watchmakers followed closely, developing tool watches to assistance race drivers judge their speed, distance and lap times.
These days, near every tool watch manufacturer has a relationship with an auto firm, race commuter or racing squad. Typically for both sides – horology and automotive – the goals are aligned. Both strive for high build quality, loftier performance, precision and reliability.
So, of course, there is the undeniable wealth, glamour and global reach that is mutually beneficially. With the F1 coming upward this weekend, CNA Lifestyle rounds upward 10 iconic timepieces that are most closely associated with motoring and motorsports.
1. ROLEX COSMOGRAPH DAYTONA
The Rolex Cosmograph Daytona takes its name from the Daytona International Speedway race runway in Daytona Beach, Florida.
Produced in 1963 as a tool lookout man for motor racing enthusiasts – its three chronograph counters are meant to record lap times – the Daytona gained cult status thank you to actor and racecar commuter Paul Newman. In Oct 2017, Newman'southward own Daytona sold for a record cost at auction.
This yr, Rolex revived the Rainbow Daytona in Everose – the brand's proprietary formula for rose gold. Produced in extremely limited quantities, the distinctive watch, with its 36 baguette-cutting sapphires arranged in a rainbow spectrum effectually the bezel, was initially available only in yellow or white gold.
2. BREITLING FOR BENTLEY
What began as a one-off venture between Swiss watchmaker Breitling and British automaker Bentley in 2002 has evolved into a partnership that survives to this twenty-four hour period.
The collection of co-branded timepieces each sport blueprint motifs inspired past Bentley dashboard or interior elements. These features are evident in the latest timekeeper: 2017's Bentley GT "Dark Sapphire" Edition, made for the third generation of the Continental GT.
Notice the diamond knurling on the bezel, a grip-enhancing feature establish on the car's rotary controls. The diamond motif is also present on the punch and rubber strap. The watchcase'south deep blue hue, reminiscent of Bentley'due south Dark Sapphire livery, comes courtesy of Breitlight, a proprietary high-tech material.
iii. CHOPARD MILLE MIGLIA
Chopard became the partner and official timekeeper of the Mille Miglia race in 1988, producing a limited collection of timepieces for each edition.
This year'due south crop sees 2 chronographs, known as the Mille Miglia 2022 Race Edition, housed in a steel- or steel-and-18k-rose-gold case. Both characteristic finely finished dials and movements as well as calfskin straps with rubber linings inspired past 1960s Dunlop racing tyre treads.
This being the 30th anniversary of its brotherhood with the Mille Miglia, Chopard as well unveiled five special edition chronographs with brightly coloured dials. The colours are inspired by the different marques and national identities that competed in the rally betwixt 1927 and 1940: Blood-red (Italy), dark-green (the UK), silverish (Germany), yellow (Belgium) and blue (France).
4. HUBLOT Big BANG FERRARI MAGIC Gold
Hublot is the official watch of the Scuderia Ferrari and Ferrari's official timekeeper. This yr, it re-released the Big Bang Ferrari Magic Gold (circa 2012), admitting in a re-styled case and dial.
Magic Gold is a proprietary cloth that Hublot claims is the hardest gold in the world, thank you to the addition of boron carbide in the manufacturing process. It has a resistance of almost 1,000 Vickers, more than twice that of regular 18k gold.
The new case sports more curves than the original. The dial, though dissimilar from the 2022 version, notwithstanding references Ferrari in many means. The minute counter at 3 o'clock resembles a tachymeter counter, while the date window recalls a gear selector. A second counter at nine o'clock recalls an air extractor, while the prancing horse motif is prominently positioned at half-dozen o'clock.
5. IWC INGENIEUR
In 2004, IWC signed a long-term deal with AMG, the performance brand of Mercedes-Benz. When AMG celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2017, a commemorative timepiece was in order. Enter the Ingenieur Chronograph Sport Edition "50th Anniversary of Mercedes-AMG", a watch that took its design cues from vintage Ingenieur archetypes.
To showcase its kinship with motorsports, the watch has a tachymeter scale that, when used together with the chronograph paw, allows wearers to calculate the average speed over a one-kilometre distance.
In add-on, the protection confronting magnetic fields on the case back is inspired by the carbon brake discs that feature on Mercedes-AMG cars. The Ingenieur was developed in the 1950s, and was one of the beginning wristwatches to avowal antimagnetic properties.
6. OMEGA SPEEDMASTER
Although the Omega Speedmaster has the reputation of being the first timepiece worn on the moon, it was originally designed as a racing lookout. The first Speedmaster in 1957 was the first chronograph wristwatch to feature a tachymeter scale on its bezel rather than on its dial, which fabricated it handy for racecar drivers to time their laps.
A 1968 version of the Speedmaster came with a Racing Dial, showcasing orange and red minute markers, orange chronograph hands, and an orange logo. This particular model inspired many other Speedmasters throughout the years, the almost recent case being the 2022 Speedmaster Automatic.
The orange markings on the minute track reprise their role, but the original three-counter configuration has given way to a two-counter layout. The movement has been upgraded to a gimmicky, high-precision engine.
seven. PARMIGIANI FLEURIER BUGATTI Blazon 390
Parmigiani Fleurier has been a partner of Bugatti since 2004. In 2016, Parmigiani Fleurier unveiled a concept watch, the Bugatti Type 390, to coincide with the release of the Bugatti Chiron, the earth'southward fastest production car with a elevation speed of 420 kmh.
The Bugatti Type 390 has a motion built on the transverse axis, like a automobile engine cake, and was housed in a distinctively shaped instance. It was launched as a working model in Oct 2017, afterward more than a year of testing and refinement.
Customers can specify the external appearance of the watch, just like how they can customise the wait of their cars. They also do not demand to be a Bugatti owner to buy the watch. Conversely, Bugatti owners do not receive special privileges if they want to purchase the scout.
8. RICHARD MILLE RM11-03
The link with F1 started when Richard Mille partnered (then-Sauber) commuter Felipe Massa in 2004. The company developed several watches for the driver to wear during races, to test their real world operation. Collaborations with other drivers presently followed, as well as racing teams such as Lotus F1 and McLaren-Honda, the latter having signed a 10-twelvemonth partnership get-go in 2016.
The latest venture in the Richard Mille-McLaren-Honda alliance: The RM 11-03 McLaren Automated Flyback Chronograph, a timepiece that allows wearers to quickly restart the stopwatch function to time the side by side lap.
Pattern-wise, the titanium push-buttons on the example echo the distinctive headlights of the McLaren 720S, while the crown is shaped like a wheel. Titanium inserts on the bezel, adorned with the McLaren logo, recall the racecar'due south air-intake snorkel.
9. TAG HEUER CARRERA
TAG Heuer'south interest in motorsports is extensive, ranging from being the official spotter of Red Bull Racing to the official timekeeper of the IndyCar Series in the US.
The visitor tin can trace its racing roots to the Heuer brand of dashboard stopwatches congenital in the 1930s. Only it was the Carrera chronograph wristwatch of 1963 that helped Heuer reach widespread acclaim, thanks to the pantheon of racing legends on whose wrists it saturday. Niki Lauda, Bruce McLaren and Ayrton Senna were among these.
The Carrera currently forms the flagship collection in TAG Heuer'due south lineup. Two vintage-inspired pieces were unveiled this yr, the 55th ceremony of the Carrera'south launch: A black version with a black leather strap and a bluish version with a steel bracelet. Both are iii-counter chronographs powered past automatic Calibre 16 movements.
10. TUDOR HERITAGE CHRONO BLUE
Rolex might have the Daytona, only younger sibling Tudor has the Oysterdate Chronograph Ref. 7169 "Montecarlo". This ii-counter chronograph from 1973 accomplished cult status because of its bold, orange-and-blue, Mediterranean-inspired colourway.
The sentry'south nickname stemmed from the resemblance of its chronograph counters to roulette wheels. And while at that place is no record of the Montecarlo existence used at the Monaco Grand Prix, it did not stop enthusiasts from associating it with the glamour of the GP and the jet set spirit of the era.
Tudor revived this model in 2013, the Montecarlo's 40th anniversary, calling information technology the Heritage Chrono Blue. The gimmicky version followed the original blueprint closely, with subtle changes to the example architecture, an updated movement and new bracelet options.
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