In the last few weeks, we combined the passion for watches and cars thanks to Charles Leclerc ‘s victory, a surprise that has astonished everyone.
As you discovered in the article in memory of Niki Lauda, our love for mechanics is universal and not confined to a steel or titanium case.
Sometimes we devote ourselves to slightly bigger and louder mechanisms, which still manage to leave us speechless. If then these mechanisms instead of a Geneva Seal (doesn’t it tell you anything? Check it out here!) carry an Italian flag on the podium, we can’t help but be proud of it.
Charles Leclerc!
Born in 1997, the young pilot is from Monaco, where Formula1 flows as well as on the city streets, in the veins of many. As public avenues are the only racing circuit in the Principality, he began to attend the karting track in Brignoles, France, run by the father of his friend and colleague Jules Bianchi, tragically deceased prematurely.
That Charles was a promise was immediately clear in 2005, the year he drove a kart for the first time and within a few months he already was Champion of France. As well as the year after.
The career
The climb in the racing world had just begun, leading him to compete in the world karting championship until 2014, when he moved to single-seaters, immediately attracting attention with his numerous podiums.
From there to Formula 1 was only a matter of time, where he landed in 2016 as a Ferrari testdriver. A good start, let’s say!
However, it will be the Swiss team Sauber that will offer him the first official driver’s contract in Formula1 in 2018, where even with a not exceptionally fast car, he manages to achieve remarkable results.
So, one year later, Ferrari wanted Leclerc back in his team. And no longer as a test driver, but as the official driver alongside Sebastian Vettel!
A somewhat unfortunate start, which, as a result of some mistakes and some accidents, didn’t allow him to shine as he could.
Determined to prove his potential, in the Belgian GP he took the pole position, leading Ferrari to win his first Grand Prix of the season and so was crowned the youngest driver ever to win a GP with Ferrari (21 years and 10 months).
The result was replicated last week in Monza, where after 9 years, he brought Ferrari back to the top step of the podium at home.
Another passion
As well as getting excited when we see him wave the tricolor flag on the podium, Charles Leclerc makes us excited even when we look at his left wrist.
The young racing promise seems to greatly appreciate the partnership between Hublot and Ferrari, as we saw him cutting the ribbon at the opening of the new boutique in Monaco. More than a sponsorship, Charles Leclerc seems to have a genuine passion for watches.
The watch that Leclerc seems to have chosen as a companion on and off the track is a Hublot Big Bang MECA-10 Black Magic, a timepiece with a sporty and sturdy character. A 10-day power reserve and 45 mm ceramic case, it’s practical and large enough to allow you easily read the time on skeletonized dial, as long as you don’t stare to the beautiful mechanism.
The price of wearing the same watch as a champion? Hublot offers the MECA-10 Black Magic for a list price of 21.700€.
Among Leclerc fans, however, there has always been one in particular, which perhaps says something to you too: Richard Mille.
And we’re not talking about the company, we’re talking about Mr. Mille himself.
‘Since his early days in karting, I have closely followed Charles’ progress, immediately convincing the brand must support his budding talent.’
Even when he was racing in karts Richard Mille wanted to encourage Leclerc in a collaboration that lasted for over 10 years, coming to create for him a prototype called RM 67-02, which best reflected the young promise.
Richard Mille managed to enclose in a Case made of TPT composite material and titanium Grade 5 his lightest automatic watch ever, just 32 grams, equipping it with the lightest elastic strap ever made.
An automatic watch, thin, light, colorful and athletic, that can be adapted to various sports competitions. That’s what Mille said, concluding: “On Charles‘ wrist, (the watch) allows the brand to test new technical solutions for its future models”.
A watch worthy of being worn on the top step of the podium, where it waves the colors of Monaco’s flag, thanks to the white case and strap with red details and the bridges painted in the same colors.
If you want to feel like Leclerc we’re sorry, but Ferrari does not have any single-seaters to propose to you and so does Richard Mille, Charles Leclerc’s RM 67-02 being an only-piece.
However, other versions of the RM 67-02 are available to the public at a price of 118.500 €.
Apart from his own unique piece, we saw him wearing other Richard Mille, above all the l’RM35-01, that we spotted on our page!
Our best wishes and congrats to Charles Leclerc and Ferrari, with the hope of seeing many more tricolours flags waving on the first place of the podium.
It will then be an additional pleasure for us if we can spot some other interesting prototypes, such as the RM 67-02 or the MECA-10, near the flag!
What watches did Andy Warhol wear? Check it out on our dedicated article!
