TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna: homage to Ayrton

TAG Heuer and Ayrton Senna. Those who love Formula 1 and watchmaking – two passions that often go hand in hand – know that the Swiss brand and the Brazilian star form an indissoluble pair. TAG Heuer saw in Senna the embodiment of its own constant striving for perfection and performance; Senna saw in TAG Heuer’s micromechanics the same precision and reliability he sought in the macromechanics of his cars. Over the years, the Swiss brand has dedicated twelve limited editions of its watches to Ayrton Senna, and a tribute to the champion could not lack in 2024, which marks the 30th anniversary of his death. This tribute is called theCarrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna.

TAG HEUER AND SENNA: SHARED VALUES

But before writing about the watch, let us broaden our view to what the brand’s most enduring partnership currently looks like. It starts with the 6000 series, with its chequered flag dial, and goes all the way up to the latest TAG Heuer Formula 1 Senna special editions of 2022. The partnership between TAG Heuer and Ayrton Senna goes beyond mere sponsorship, as it is one of mutual respect, shared values, and a commitment to always achieve the best. Since 1988, TAG Heuer has worked closely with the driver, later becoming an official partner for all products bearing the S typical to the Senna brand.

Ayrton Senna‘s partnership with the brand was consolidated in 1994, when he became one of TAG Heuer’s official ambassadors and chose the S/el model as his watch. That chronograph (whose name stood for Sport & Elegance) was characterised by a two-tone design – which later became a symbol – and incredible precision. Senna’s affection for that watch made the S/el chronograph famous among his colleagues, so much so that other drivers wore it to follow the trend started by the champion.

Ayrton Senna‘s involvement with TAG Heuer was not only particularly successful in terms of product. The relationship the star had with the brand also influenced global distribution to some extent. In Japan, for example, his memorable exploits on the Suzuka circuit helped TAG Heuer establish itself as a major brand in the Japanese market, and led to the opening of the brand’s first shop in the country. Similarly, his being Brazilian ensured that in South America the brand became deeply connected to the continent’s culture, making the passion for motorsport go global.  

CARRERA CHRONOGRAPH TOURBILLON X SENNA: CALIBRE AND CASE

All this, and more, is part of the new watch with which TAG Heuer pays tribute to Ayrton Senna’s legend. Because the new Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna is a blend of aesthetics and technology designed to create a chronograph that Ayrton, if the racing driver were still with us today, would certainly wear on his wrist, just as he wore the S/el chronograph. With the difference that, in the current watch, the mechanical part is pushed even more to the extremes in terms of movement engineering.

In fact, it is the manufacture calibre TH20-09, a column-wheel chronograph calibre with hours, minutes, seconds, date and 1-minute tourbillon – a movement developed on the basis of the Heuer 02T, an automatic chronograph calibre combined with a COSC-certified tourbillon, featuring black skeletonised bridges, a black column wheel and a skeletonised oscillating weight. The tourbillon cage is made of carbon and titanium, and the movement offers a power reserve of over 65 hours. So, as you can see, a concentration of technology that would certainly not have disappointed Ayrton Senna.

A technology which is also found in the 44 mm case in grade 2 titanium, 15.10 mm thick and water-resistant to 10 bar. Featuring a brushed and sandblasted finish, it is enhanced by a fixed tachometric bezel in forged carbon with the S and SENNA logos written in yellow. A use of carbon that is also a tribute to one of Formula 1’s fundamental materials. On the bezel, the engraved tachymeter scale is the classic one going up to 400 km/h; a speed that Senna never reached but a detail he would probably have loved.

Titanium is also found in the crown and chronograph pushers, brushed and polished. However, it is grade 5 titanium; grade 2 is reserved for the screw-down case back, which bears the image of Senna in his helmet and a detail indicating the watch’s limited edition: 500 pieces.

A STRUCTURED DIAL

TAG Heuer has also distilled its aesthetic and engineering prowess into the dial of the Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna. It has chosen a skeleton whose motif is that of the chequered flag, with a fine brushed black finish and a coarse-grained black central decoration. The dial is enhanced by a blue flange with a 60 seconds/minute scale and a green surround. The chronograph minute counter at 3 o’clock is skeletonised azuré blue with a yellow lacquered hand that is also skeletonised; the same aesthetics apply to the chronograph hour counter at 9 o’clock but which, in addition, has the Senna logo in yellow.

Those with sharp eyes will have noticed the repetition of the colours yellow, green and blue: the colours of the Brazilian flag and Ayrton Senna’s helmet. A not-so-subtle tribute that blends well, on the dial, with the facetted and polished rhodium-plated hour and minute hands with white Super-LumiNova, the yellow lacquered central hand and the applied TAG Heuer logo plated in polished rhodium. All protected by a bevelled, domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating.

The TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna is completed by a blue strap in high-quality rubber, comfortable on the wrist and extremely resistant. A concentrate of technology and avant-garde that TAG Heuer puts on the market with a price tag of €37,300, in line with what can be expected from a manufacture tourbillon and a chronograph that, in terms of materials, is the state of the art of watchmaking.

WATCHES ON SHOW

The new timepiece was previewed to the Italian press last October, at the exhibition curated by Carlo Cavicchi ‘Ayrton Senna Forever‘, hosted at the Museo Nazionale dell’Automobile in Turin. From October 3rd to November 3rd, within the largest and most comprehensive exhibition of cars, memorabilia, books and photos related to Senna ever realized, TAG Heuer set up ‘The Times of Ayrton’, a journey through time through the brand’s watches chosen and worn by the Brazilian star.

The timepieces on display ranged from the 200 Series, worn by Senna from 1989 onwards, to the 1990 S/el. The latter was one of his favourite watches, which he wore for years, alternating between champagne and anthracite dial versions. Also on display was the TAG Heuer Formula 1 model with a red bezel worn for the first time at the 1991 Japanese Grand Prix, a revolutionary watch at the time because its chronograph module was powered by a quartz base. In addition to the version chosen by Ayrton, this chronograph was also available with a blue or black bezel.

Also on display in Turin: TAG Heuer’s 6000 series, which made its debut in 1992 and which Senna appreciated in its version with a white dial and leather strap. To complete the exhibition, the brand chose to bring to Turin the most recent model dedicated to Senna, the TAG Heuer Formula 1 Chronograph x Senna; powered by the Calibre 16 automatic chronograph movement, it features racing-red touches and a steel S-link bracelet echoing the design of the S/el series. The ultimate tribute to a champion and his immortality.

By Davide Passoni