With the new F1 season set to kick off at the Bahrain Grand Prix this week, fans have been enjoying a first look at the pre-season testing of the redesigned cars the drivers will be racing this year. While the new driver line-up in each team and the results of this early testing have dominated recent headlines, the start of the 2023 Formula 1 season also sees the announcement of new sponsors, including the timepiece sponsors that will be providing the watches your favourite drivers will wear till the final race at Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit. Let’s take a closer look.
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Mercedes-AMG Petronas & IWC Schaffhausen
Probably the horological F1 sponsorship that gets the most attention, the partnership between Mercedes-AMG Petronas and IWC Schaffhausen was formed a decade ago in 2013 and has been cemented in the years since with a number of limited editions, including most recently the IWC Mercedes-AMG Petronas Team Watch and the IWC x Hot Wheels “Racing Works” limited edition set. IWC has also created a number of customised one-of-one watches for Lewis Hamilton over the years, with the two companies even offering fans the chance to race in a Mercedes F1 driving simulator in Chadstone over the summer break. It’s one of the best watchmaking partnerships in F1 and we’re looking forward to what gets released in 2023.
Oracle Red Bull Racing & TAG Heuer
The partnership between Oracle Red Bull Racing and TAG Heuer is another one on the F1 grid with a serious legacy, having first inked the deal back in 2016. As a watchmaker TAG Heuer has decades of history involved in motorsports, from the pioneering Carrera Panamericana car races of the 1950s to today, with directly linked collections such as the Formula 1, Monaco and Carrera ranges. Max Verstappen has often been spotted wearing a Monaco chronograph limited edition, while Sergio Perez picks his own Carrera Tourbillon Sergio Perez Edition.
Ferrari & Richard Mille
Outside of the F1 track, Ferrari and Richard Mille are both well-recognised as two of the most exclusive and luxurious brands on the planet, linked by their focus on uncompromising performance and their passion for pushing technological boundaries. So when the two announced their F1 sponsorship ahead of the 2021 season, no one was surprised. It’s been a fruitful partnership, with Richard Mille releasing the world’s thinnest watch (just 1.75mm thick) as a co-branded project with Ferrari and the F1 drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz both acting as perfect ambassadors for the ultra-exclusive timepieces.
Aston Martin & Girard-Perregaux
Another partnership that was formed in 2021 was the one between Aston Martin and Girard-Perregaux, which sees two precision manufacturers at the summits of their respective industries link for what has already been an interesting union on the watchmaking front. The 306-piece limited edition Girard-Perregaux Laureato Absolute Chronograph Aston Martin F1 Edition arrived with a 44mm case made from titanium powder and carbon taken from actual F1 cars, which fresh signing and legendary driver Fernando Alonso will wear alongside teammate Lance Stroll.
McLaren & Richard Mille
While Richard Mille has only recently contractually adorned the wrists of Ferrari’s drivers, the partnership between McLaren and the watchmaker was announced as a 10-year deal back in 2016, a show of deep confidence by both parties that it was to be a worthy relationship. During that time, Richard Mille created a number of McLaren-linked timepieces including the RM 50-03 from 2017 and the following year with the RM 11-03 McLaren, as well as the instantly recognisable Richard Mille RM 40-01 Speedtail Automatic Tourbillon. With Lando Norris and new Australian signing Oscar Piastri on the roster for 2023, it’ll be an exciting season for sure.
Williams & Bremont
It was a big year for new watch sponsorships in 2021, with another new relationship forming between Williams Racing and Bremont as two English-founded firms linked up in a celebration of British engineering. The young-ish partnership has resulted in what has to be one of the best-looking watches to come from an F1 deal, with the classically styled WR-22 Chronograph set to be proudly worn by both Alex Albon and new 2023 signing Logan Sargeant.
Alfa Romeo & Rebellion Timepieces
One of the newest watch sponsors to join the F1 grid is Rebellion Timepieces, which partnered with Alfa Romeo in 2022 just as former Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas was confirmed to drive for the Italian team. Despite being a younger watch brand only founded in 2008, Rebellion Timepieces has already started to make a name for itself as an automotive-focused brand, which had previously been the official timing partner of the Dakar Rally and has since launched two limited edition watches in honour of Bottas and teammate Zhou Guanyu.
Alpine & Bell & Ross
Bell & Ross has been a fixture on the F1 grid for a number of years now, having first sponsored Renault in 2016 before the team rebranded under the Alpine flag. The relationship has stayed strong throughout the years with Bell & Ross creating a number of different collections around the F1 team, proudly worn by Daniel Ricciardo during his Renault tenure, with the most recent being the Bell & Ross Alpine F1 Team collection of black and blue chronographs.
AlphaTauri And HAAS Without Watches
While nearly all Formula 1 teams in 2023 have watches among their sponsorship lineup, neither AlphaTauri nor HAAS currently has a partner to provide their timepieces. HAAS previously enjoyed a relationship with Richard Mille that ended in 2020 and was sponsored by CYRUS Genève in 2021, while AlphaTauri had a relationship with Casio Edifice during the 2021 season that wasn’t continued. Fortunately for 2023 HAAS drivers Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg and AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda and Nyck De Vries, their multimillion-dollar salaries mean they can afford pretty much any watch their hearts desire.
