Rhapsody in Blue: Ulysse Nardin’s Freak ONE Navy Blue Hits the High Notes

Since it rocked the horological scene with its 2001 debut at Baselworld, Ulysse Nardin has rolled out numerous takes on its iconoclastic Freak model.

This week, the brand outfitted the latest Freak ONE in navy blue, a nod to the brand’s historic nautical roots in producing some of the world’s most renowned marine chronometers once used for naval navigation.

The original Freak was the brainchild of watchmaking mastermind Ludwig Oechslin (who parted ways with Ulysse Nardin in 2003 after creating award-winning watches for over 20 years) and radically broke from watchmaking conventions by dispensing with the dial, crown, and even hands.

Instead, its flying carousel movement performed double duty, indicating the hours and minutes as it turned around the dial. Meanwhile, a rotating notched bezel was used to set the time, and a winding mechanism was integrated into the caseback.
 

It also pioneered the use of silicon in watchmaking, incorporating silicon parts into the escapement for the first time. The anti-magnetic, shock- and temperature-resistant material is almost frictionless, endowing watches with enhanced precision and reliability.

Even as avant-garde watches proliferated in the early aughts, the exceedingly complicated time-only watches of the cheekily named Freak collection instantly captured the attention of contemporary connoisseur collectors with their dynamic combination of cutting-edge aesthetics and mechanical watchmaking prowess.

Over the next two decades, the collection evolved and expanded in various ways. Then, in 2023, the Freak ONE launched as an updated expression of the original and captured that year’s Iconic prize at the Grand Prix de l’Horlogerie de Genève.
 

“The Freak ONE is the quintessence of the Freak collection, and it encapsulates Ulysse Nardin’s spirit and values,” said CEO Patrick Pruniaux during an interview a few years ago. “It’s a highly technical watch that revolutionized watchmaking… No other watch has similarly broken every traditional rule of watchmaking and reshaped the art of horology in its own image.”

Last fall, the brand followed up with a military-inspired OPS model. Now, Ulysse Nardin has unveiled the Freak ONE Navy Blue.

Staying true to the Freak ONE’s nonconformist spirit, its 44mm titanium case is finished with satin-polished black DLC and a bezel forged in Carbonium. Touting an extraordinarily high strength-to-weight ratio, this composite material, introduced by the brand in 2019, is made using carbon fiber offcuts from the aircraft manufacturing process, reducing its environmental impact by 40% compared to other carbon composites.
 

Fun Fact: The unique marbled look is the result of Carbonium being produced under very high pressure at very high temperatures with seven-micrometer fibers organically woven together.

Additionally, in keeping with the Freak’s design codes, there are no hands.

The arrow tip of the automatic Calibre UN-240 Manufacture movement’s flying carousel, with its silicon balance wheel and escapement suspended by a bridge, acts as the minute hand. Meanwhile, a pointer on the barrel cover that sits under the movement serves as the hour indicator. Both hour and minute pointers are coated with light gray Super-LumiNova that lights up blue after dark.
 

The oversized silicon oscillator and balance spring further heighten the visual drama, while the escapement wheel and anchor – the watch’s beating heart – are coated in DiamonSil. Patented by Ulysse Nardin in 2009, this proprietary material combines silicon and synthetic diamond for heightened resistance and robustness.

As always, the brand’s highly efficient Grinder automatic winding system quickly charges the movement to its 90-hour power reserve maximum, while the setting device is recessed into the caseback.
 

The Freak ONE Navy Blue’s black case and bezel are contrasted with a deep blue rotating disc engraved with a sunray pattern framed by a blue chapter ring with Arabic numerals at 12, 3, 6, and 9 and indices for the other hours.

Finally, the Freak ONE Navy Blue can be worn on either a blue and black ballistic rubber strap with a woven texture or a blue and gray rubber strap. Both straps are made using 30% recycled material.