Cars & motorsport
Breitling Is Off to the Races with Aston Martin
The watchmaker’s newly announced partnership with the British carmaker and its F1 team certainly feels like a natural collaboration. That said, if the first timepiece debuted under the arrangement is any indication, exploring those natural affinities could get very deep, very fast.
By Mike Espindle
Executive Editor
Swiss watchmaker Breitling has an uncanny knack for meaningful affiliations and collaborations, especially in terms of apt partnerships across the broad spectrum of motion.
Certainly, aviation and the means of both four- and two-wheeled propulsion (as well as some recent Top Time models honoring cycling greats Fausto Coppi and Gino Bartali) have gotten the Breitling touch over the years.
Even its collaborative efforts with the NFL and its connection to surfing and water-based activities can be included in this kinetic theme.
However, last week’s announcement between Breitling and legendary British performance carmaker Aston Martin (and its Aramco F1 racing team), which makes the watchmaker its new official watch partner, adds a profound new chapter to the story.
Sense of Connection
Between Aston Martin and its F1 team, this new partnership follows the company’s past work with watchmakers like Jaeger-LeCoultre, TAG Heuer, Richard Mille, and, most recently, Girard-Perregaux. But for Breitling’s part, it is taking the long view of the opportunity and taking it very seriously.
“Aston Martin builds cars that are as much about presence as performance,” said Breitling CEO Georges Kern of the new endeavor. “We share that same heritage of iconic design: every line, finish, and proportion has purpose. Nothing is left to chance.”
Serious, Navitimer-Serious
Another indication of the pair’s commitment is that they chose to celebrate the new partnership with a collaborative limited edition version of what is arguably Breitling’s most iconic timepiece, the Navitimer.
In fact, the new Navitimer B01 Chronograph 43 Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team timepiece not only brings the watch’s legendary chronometric expertise back to the world of motorsports, but, limited as it is to 1,959 editions, this new piece also nods to Aston Martin’s debut in 1959 to the world of F1 racing (with team drivers of that era like Graham Hill and Jim Clark wearing Navitimers, BTW).
As a result, fans of the intersection of timepieces and automobiles who acquire the new Navitimer B01 Chronograph 43 Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team model will get something more thoughtful than simply the “shared values” you might expect from a typical watch/automotive collaboration. And the partnership has really only just started.
Hands on the Wheel
Refreshingly, co-branded badging is kept to a minimum on the new limited edition, with the exhibition caseback framed by a soft “Instruments For Drivers” message along with the limited edition numerology. Moreover, an Aston Martin logo and some Formula One Team details are visible on the COSC-certified Breitling 01 calibre’s black winding rotor.
Some understated green and lime Aston Martin racing livery color notes and a track-inspired carbon fiber dial approach do not overly distract from this 43mm black-and-white panda chrono’s authentic Navitimer goodness.
Side note: Please, please don’t miss the fact that this collaborative piece is the first Navitimer wrought in lightweight titanium (leading to an overall weight of less than 100 grams). That said, its wrist presence, technical appearance, elaborate slide-rule gauging (with MPH indication), mushroom chrono pushers, knobby bezel, and other details can race side by side with any other current member of the Navitimer family.
So, while many of these details are mostly closely associated with aviation (and aerospace), they also make for one heck of a racing watch.
Crystal Ball Gazing?
What might the future bring? For starters, this partnership’s track presence will debut in March at Melbourne’s Australian Grand Prix with car badging and team apparel reflecting the association.
However, if past is prologue, then, as Aston Martin CEO Adrian Hallmark noted in a recent press release about this new team-up, “Aston Martin and Breitling have crossed paths at key moments in design and culture. The partnership is a perfect showcase of excellence, design mastery, and performance – something that is integral to everything that Aston Martin puts its name to.”
One example of those crossed paths – and to artfully side-step the relationship between Omega and the James Bond franchise a bit – is the appearance of a hefty Breitling Top Time as a dive watch on the wrist of Sean Connery in 1965’s Thunderball.
This film’s appearance not only ushered in a new, sportier era for the watchmaker, but it was also the film canon’s first of many Q Branch-modified gadget watches for the spy.
With connection points like that, and with the new Navitimer’s lighter-touch yet meaningful execution, we are already certainly looking forward to what more this partnership might lead to.
Pricing & Availability
You’ll have to drive pretty fast to pre-order the Navitimer B01 Chronograph 43 Aston Martin Armco Formula One Team, which is limited to 1,959 pieces and lists for $11,500. For more information, check out the Breitling website.