The rotor, which can be seen through the open caseback, is designed to resemble Porsche’s steering wheel. The dial’s asphalt effect was created especially for this watch. It contains the in-house caliber Heuer 02 manufacture movement with an 80-hour power reserve and comes on a calf leather strap with stitching that echoes the Porsche interior or on an interlocking bracelet designed to recall streamlined racing design. The 44 mm case is steel.
The collaboration between the two brands extends beyond product development into
competitive racing. The TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team has already set a milestone at the opener in Diriyah (SA) in November 2019, with a second place win. In its second year, the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team, which uses all-electric cars, will fight for the World Championship. Porsche has long distinguished itself in endurance events, and together with TAG Heuer, its GT Team will compete in the coming FIA World Endurance Championship, along with series partnerships in ten editions of the Porsche Carrera Cup. In addition to physical competitions, TAG Heuer also engages in virtual racing by supporting the Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup. TAG Heuer is naturally stepping in as global partner in Porsche’s classic events and rallies as well. Beyond the broad-based partnership in motorsports and esports, TAG Heuer and Porsche also share a passion for golf and tennis. Golf has been a focal point of the TAG Heuer Connected watch developments in recent years, with the TAG Heuer Golf app. Porsche, for its part, is running its own golf activities, such as the Porsche Golf Cup, and has been the sponsor of the Porsche European Open golf tournament since 2015, both of which TAG Heuer will join. The two brands will also team up for events in the tennis world, including Porsche’s own tournament, the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, of which TAG Heuer will be the Official Timing, Watch and Chronograph partner.
LOOKING BACK, THE TWO BRANDS HAVE A LONG HISTORY OF COLLABORATIONS OR SIMILAR ACHIEVEMENTS.
After a class win in the Carrera Panamericana race of 1954, Porsche called its most powerful engine the Carrera. In 1963, Heuer created its first Carrera chronograph to help race car drivers time their laps. In the late ’60s, Heuer signed a sponsorship deal with Fribourg, Switzerland-based racing driver and Porsche dealer Jo Siffert, who wore the Heuer logo on his car and suit. Siffert also bought Heuer watches at wholesale prices and resold them to his racing friends. It was this connection that led Steve McQueen to wear the Heuer logo on his racing suit during the filming of Le Mans in 1970, in which he drove a Porsche 917. McQueen said at the time, “I drive the same car as Jo Siffert, and I want to wear the same suit as him.” TAG Heuer, the name assumed by the Swiss watch brand when it was sold to the TAG Group in the mid-1980s, was a founding partner of the Formula E championship, helping to raise the profile of single-seater races in electric cars. Porsche created its own Formula E team with TAG Heuer as title and timing partner in 2019. In the mid-1980s, TAG Heuer developed and produced the Tag-Turbo engine with Porsche that powered the McLaren team to win two consecutive F1 titles with Niki Lauda in 1984 and Alain Prost in 1985.
A L S O N J E W E L E R S M A G A Z I N E [ 51 A L S O N J E W E L E R S . C O M
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