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Watches On The Podium
Richard Mille and Scuderia Ferrari

After the first two race weekends of this year’s F1 season, we’re not-so-quietly pleased to see Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz of Scuderia Ferrari taking the top two places in the driver standings. But whether you’re are a Ferrari fan or not, you’ve probably noticed one of the team’s key sponsors — Swiss luxury watch brand Richard Mille.

Based in Les Breuleux, Richard Mille signed a multi-year partnership with Ferrari agreement in early 2021, and has been the team’s sponsor and licensee since then. The Richard Mille logo can be spotted on the cars, the drivers’ racing suits, as well as their helmets, but the partnership is more than just prominent logo placement. Besides Formula 1, the watchmaker also supports Ferrari’s other motorsport activities as the official timekeeper and is involved in the Competizioni GT and the Ferrari Challenge series, the Ferrari Driver Academy, the Ferrari Esports Series, and the FDA Esports Team.

An exclusive collaboration that will result in a range of limited-edition watches is also said to be in the works, and Ferrari’s two drivers are of course always seen wearing Richard Mille watches on the track, as is Team Principal Mattia Binotto.

Interestingly, Leclerc actually has a long sponsorship history with the watch brand and, as such, has been wearing a Richard Mille piece for almost a decade now. His recent watch of choice is the RM 67-02 prototype sporting a white case and red strap – a colour palette not just fit for Ferrari but also Leclerc’s home country of Monaco. The skeletonized timepiece is crafted with luxury materials including white gold, DLC-treated grade 5 titanium, and carbon fibre — and is paired with an in-house CRMA7 movement. Weighing just 32g, it’s easily the lightest watch from the brand. The RM 67-02 Automatic Winding Extra Flat on Sainz’s wrist is also hand painted with the shades found on the Spanish flag. It seems like both drivers are keen to show off their roots.