Which affordable watch brands would people like to see in Formula 1?
Formula 1 is an interest I'm sure I share with many others here, and its link to some of the top-end watch brands is well-documented, every team bar 2 (Haas and Alpha Tauri) have horological sponsors, and almost all can be considered the highest pedigree, and all are far out of the slim bracket of affordability that many people, especially young and beginner collectors, have.
Mercedes is partnered with IWC Schaffhausen
Red Bull is partnered with Tag Heuer
Aston Martin (my team) is partnered with Girard-Perregaux
Mclaren and Ferrari are both partnered with Richard Mille
Alfa Romeo is partnered with Rebellion Timepieces
Williams is partnered with Bremont
While these are all brilliant brands, I wonder which affordable brands (sub-£500 preferably) people want to see to break up all the unaffordability. Personally, I'd love to see Rotary come back as a sponsor, and perhaps Junghans alongside the upcoming Audi entry, a German watchmaker for a German team even if they have limited racing connections.
Hope you've all enjoyed my little ramble, and I'd be interested to see what people think!
19-year-old student in the English Midlands with a low-budget collection. Got into watches while researching Soviet timepieces, still have a love for USSR watches. Getting more interested in stepping...
alpha taury had a cheap sponsor, Casio edifice, you can still buy their limited editions which are awesome
there is also invicta who sponsors a team in f2 but i don't recomend their rally s1 line
Alpha Tauri was sponsored by Casio Edifice for a while. Seiko could sponsor them as they did with Honda Racing back in the day.
Audi Racing teams are already sponsored by Oris for quite a long time, so the F1 team may carry on Oris which is still an affordable brand compared to the others.
That’s an interesting point. Tag are obviously deeply imbedded inside F1, it would be great to see other brands involved.. I have no idea of the sponsorship costs involved, but can only imagine it makes smaller companies balk at the thought of it.
F1 is all about big money, luxury and cutting edge tech. Road courses are set in beautiful locations & tracks have become super glam. Any new course added is a ridiculous architectural dream. I am not sure there is a ticket at any venue that could be had for sub-£500. If you add up travel, tickets, & any concessions, you buy a great watch or see a race. Rolex doesn't even bother sponsoring a team: they just sponsor the whole race. Even the Red Bull Tag Chrono is a little pricey for a base quartz movement ( I say this contemplating buying one) . Sadly I don't know where a sub-£500 watch would live in F1.
Maybe GSHOCK or Casio could pull this off. The tie is the integrated gadgetry, durability and tech link between watch and car. Although durability in Formula One really means your car won't break down during the race on most outings. It would be underwhelming to see a race winner hoist a champaign bottle with a GSHOCK on BUT how cool would it be if he/she pulled that badboy off wrist and handed it to a fan in the crowd after the podium? Unlike the highend blingers that F1 drivers only wear on podium post race, or sipping espressos in the team trailer before a test run, a GSHOCK could be worn during all the workout takes for Drive to Survive. Also during candid offtrack clips at the beach swimming, camping etc. Then bit of video interviewing the lucky fan who now owns the watch just gushing. GSHOCK could produce an F1 model faster than anyone. Millions of watches would be sold by fans who can't afford a race ticket. The while vibe of a driver giving away his/her race day watch would be amazing PR Marketing
Just go with Rolex, their the official timekeeper of the whole series!
G-Shock would be cool to see.. but I'm a big g-shock fan so..
Probably Sinn could tie up with Audi and come up with a new chronograph. That would be nice. But judging by how F1 works, it's too cheap, so probably Glashuette Original could work with Audi and come up with a new watch design.
Alpha Tauri was sponsored by Casio Edifice for a while. Seiko could sponsor them as they did with Honda Racing back in the day.
Audi Racing teams are already sponsored by Oris for quite a long time, so the F1 team may carry on Oris which is still an affordable brand compared to the others.
My dad actually has one of their watches in his collection that I'm fixing for him