Beyond the Flag
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Formula 1’s rich history with luxury watches

By Ben Pattavina

Mercedes' British driver Lewis Hamilton adjusts his watch in the parc ferme after the qualifying sessions at the Autodromo Nazionale circuit in Monza, on September 10, 2021, ahead of the Italian Formula One Grand Prix. (Photo by LARS BARON / various sources / AFP) (Photo by LARS BARON/AFP via Getty Images)
Mercedes' British driver Lewis Hamilton adjusts his watch in the parc ferme after the qualifying sessions at the Autodromo Nazionale circuit in Monza, on September 10, 2021, ahead of the Italian Formula One Grand Prix. (Photo by LARS BARON / various sources / AFP) (Photo by LARS BARON/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Nyck de Vries, Formula 1
Nyck de Vries, McLaren, Formula 1 (Photo by MAURO PIMENTEL / AFP) (Photo by MAURO PIMENTEL/AFP via Getty Images) /

Formula 1 watches: Team partnerships with watch brands (continued)

The only watch brand currently sponsoring two Formula 1 teams, Richard Mille, have had their stamp on motorsports for several decades. In a sense, Richard Mille is the watchmaking equivalent of Formula 1 itself. Much like the cars, Richard Mille watches are brilliantly constructed works of art that are both eye-catching and high-performance.

They’re also ridiculously high-priced. A Formula 1 car could cost close to $15 million, while some Richard Mille watches could cost upwards of $2 million.

Richard Mille formed a partnership with McLaren in 2016, and their 10-year contract is still in effect. They followed that up with a partnership with Ferrari in 2021. Ferrari were notably known to have had Hublot as an official sponsor, but that partnership ended in late 2020, much to the delight of a number of watch enthusiasts.

Only two teams in Formula 1 were without official luxury watch sponsors during the 2022 season: Alfa Romeo and Haas. Both Alfa Romeo and Haas previously had partnerships with Richard Mille before their deals fizzled out in 2020, shortly before Richard Mille teamed up with Ferrari.

AlphaTauri had a deal with Casio for the 2022 season, but rumors now suggest that the partnership has fallen through ahead of the 2023 season.

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