One look at the TAG Heuer x Fragment Design Formula 1 shows why the watch bears the name of a motorsport series that has earned its reputation as the pinnacle of racing. This collaboration with Hiroshi Fujiwara captures the adrenaline rush of the F1 circuit by re-invigorating the design of a vintage line of TAG Heuers. Throughout the 1960s and 70s, the TAG Heuer C-Case collection ingratiated the Swiss watchmaker into the world of racing. This new model carries on that legacy with a fixed tachymeter bezel and dual-chronograph dial that modernizes design elements from the C-Case models of yesteryear.
The calibre HEUER02 automatic chronograph movement at the core of the Formula 1’s 44mm case is made visible by a transparent caseback that serves as a canvas to imprint the watch with Fujiwara’s eye for design. The caseback is constructed out of a red sapphire crystal which serves as a window into the inner machinations of the watch, which are engineered as intricately as what is seen when peering under the hood of an F1 track car. The precision of a column-wheel chronograph movement lends itself to the black face of the opaline dial, which frames two chronometers measuring 12-hour and 30-second intervals. The red accents on the dial and steel hands coalesce with the fixed tachymeter bezel for an aesthetic that emulates instruments found on the dashboard of an F1 racer to bring the design of the watch full circle.
A five-row steel bracelet made exclusively by Fragment Design caps off the latest model to carry on the racing heritage of TAG Heuer. The bracelet secures the TAG Heuer x Fragment Design Formula 1 around the wrist with a butterfly folding clasp, elegantly showcasing the polished brushed steel that gives this timepiece an allure unlike any other.