Since 1923, north western France has played host to the single most iconic endurance event in motorsport: the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It’s a race that’s defined marques, rendered specific cars tried and tested icons and built the careers of some of the most famous drivers in history. Needless to say, it, like motor racing in general, has had an impact well outside of motorsport. In fact, in the watch world, you can’t get away from it. So, as Aston Martin returns to the top class of Le Mans in 2025, we take a look at some of the watches inspired by high-performance sports, from famous liveries and technical details to specific corners of specific tracks; high-octane slices of cutting-edge modern watchmaking and fun tributes to the classic racers of yore.
GIRARD-PERREGAUX LAUREATO ABSOLUTE CHRONOGRAPH ASTON MARTIN F1 EDITION
A carbon and titanium case, a diamond-hatched engraved dial ripped straight from British automotive heritage and a movement with as much mechanical attention lavished on it as any racing machine, Girard-Perregaux’s tribute to the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team is an absolute beast. It’s about as subtle as a pack-leading car on race day with its racing green dial, yellow highlights and bold, muscular chronograph pushers and makes for one of the standout F1 partnership watches.
4mm titanium and carbon case with 100m water resistance
GP03300 automatic movement with 46-hour power reserve
ROLEX COSMOGRAPH DAYTONA
The racing watch that needs no introduction, the Daytona has been a classic since Paul Newman helped it to iconic status in 1972. The latest steel version has all the same key characteristics – the tachymeter, the trio of subdials, the screw-down pushers – but with all the advancements of modern Rolex lavished upon it, including the shiny calibre 4131 movement. This is arguably the most sought-after watch in the world – winners of both the 24 Hours of Daytona and Le Mans receive specially engraved Cosmographs – so have fun trying to get one.
40mm Oystersteel case with 100m water resistance
4131 calibre automatic movement with 72-hour power reserve
ADLEY FIXI-T1
Not all wheels have horsepower behind them and Adley as a British brand revolves around the ultimate commuter sport: cycling. Specifically, the design of the Fixi-T1 is inspired by fixed gear bikes, hence the wheel-shaped case and gear motif in the centre of the watch. Cool, minimal and reliable, with a workhorse Seiko movement inside, it’s proof that you can get your horological kicks outside the track.
40mm stainless steel case with 100m water resistance
Seiko NH35 automatic movement with 41-hour power reserve
NEZUMI VOITURE CHRONOGRAPH
A Swedish twist on classic, 70s racing chronographs, Nezumi’s funky Voiture collection is a microbrand mainstay of vintage speed. This blue edition is slightly less harsh on the eyes than the high-contrast panda and reverse panda versions, but with sparing orange highlights and those signature racing livery-inspired shapes over the 3 and 9 o’clock subdials, there’s plenty to catch the eye. Powered by a reliable Seiko mecha-quartz movement, this is a fun impulse buy if ever there was one.
40mm stainless steel case with 50m water resistance
Seiko VK63 mecha-quartz movement
RICHARD MILLE RM 72-01 LE MANS CLASSIC
Dedicated to the biennial Le Mans Classic is a bit of a paradox for this particular watch; there’s absolutely nothing classical about Richard Mille. Despite the cutting-edge Quartz TPT® tonneau case and shock-resistant, intensely skeletonised flyback chronograph calibre, there are still plenty of nods to the race across the watch, from the white and green colourway to the design of the various indicators. If it looks intense, that’s because it is.
38.4mm Quartz TPT case with 30m water resistance
CRMC1 calibre automatic movement with 50-hour power reserve
SINGER REIMAGINED 1969 BRONZE CHRONOGRAPH
The original timepieces from Singer Reimagined, the horological offshoot of the famed Porsche restorer, were phenomenal. The central chronograph from specialist movement developer Agenhor nailed their unique racing personality. The only gripe was that it was a touch big. The 1969 Chronograph takes things down to an easily wearable 40mm and, in the bronze edition, combines the patina-ready material with olive green. As you age, so will the case. I’ll let you decide who does it more gracefully.
40mm bronze case with 100m water resistance
AGH 6365 automatic movement with 72-hour power reserve
BROOKLANDS GOLDEN MILLER CHRONOGRAPH
Not all horsepower’s in an engine and the latest from Brooklands – a watch brand named after the famous classic racetrack – is all about the equestrian. A limited edition for the Cheltenham Festival, it takes the classic chronograph that is their Sir Terence Conrad-designed Triple-Four and adds a horseshoe of sapphires on the caseback and a buckle made from a shoe work by legendary racehorse Golden Miller. It doesn’t, however, give you any betting tips.
41mm stainless steel case with 100m water resistance
Sellita SW500 automatic movement with 62-hour power reserve
GIRARD-PERREGAUX LAUREATO CHRONOGRAPH ASTON MARTIN EDITION
The latest in the ongoing partnership between the haute horologists at Girard-Perregaux and your favourite British marque might just be their best (and most subtle) yet. The 42mm, 70s design is just as cool but infinitely more wearable in brushed, dark grey titanium, paired with a dial in iridescent automotive paint. That colour requires 15 ultrathin layers and two firings to get there, and it’s worth every one. Finished with grille-inspired skeleton hands and equipped with a beautifully decorated GP03300 movement, it’s an absolute stunner.
42mm titanium case with 100m water resistance
GP03300-2451 automatic movement with 46-hour power reserve
CHOPARD MILLE MIGLIA CLASSIC CHRONOGRAPH
YEMA RALLYGRAF REVERSE PANDA
Nothing says classic racing style like a high contrast, reverse panda dial and Yema’s version hammers that link home with subdial outlines ripped from classic car dashboards. Powered by a Seiko meca-quartz movement – a quartz movement with an analogue chronograph module – this is one of the French brand’s best-looking pieces, even if it is very much their entry-level. 39mm stainless steel case with 100m water resistance Seiko VK64 meca-quartz movement
BREITLING TOP TIME B01 CHEVROLET CORVETTE
If the ‘squircle’ chronograph counters weren’t enough to root this edition of Breitling’s retro Top Time chronograph in the 60s, it’s livery should be. Those colours are taken directly from the ‘Sting Ray’, the second-generation Chevrolet Corvette and the whole watch is an ode to riotous road culture and American muscle, powered by Breitling’s equally muscly B01 calibre chronograph.
41mm stainless steel case with 100m water resistance
B01 calibre automatic movement with 70-hour power reserve
OMEGA SPEEDMASTER RACING
While it’s now known as the Moonwatch, the Speedmaster cut its teeth – and got its name – on the racing circuit in the late 1950s. Not that there’s anything vintage about the modern Speedmaster Racing, with its checkered minute track, flashes of sporty orange and its METAS-certified, anti-magnetic 9900 movement. This is the sportier side of the Speedy which, for a watch that’s used to re-entering the atmosphere, is saying something.
44.25mm stainless steel case with 50m water resistance
Omega 9900 calibre automatic movement with 60-hour power reserve
TURISMO TERTRE ROUGE CHRONOGRAPH
Named after one of Le Mans’ highest corners, Turismo’s Tertre Rouge is draped in automotive colours, though not as red as the name might suggest. Across the big, 42.5mm watch there are three yellows (Primrose, French and Full Course), Gulf orange and Lola white, all with their own racing links, against a midnight blue dial. Sure, it’s quartz, but when every millisecond counts, that reliability is a godsend – and when quartz looks this good, does it matter?
42.5mm stainless steel case with 100m water resistance
Ronda quartz movement
TAG HEUER FORMULA 1 CHRONOGRAPH
TAG Heuer’s whole line-up, bar their Aquaracer diving watches, is suffused with racing legacy. As they’ve just become the official timekeeper of F1 though, the focus is squarely on, well, the TAG Heuer Formula 1 Chronograph. Big and bold in a blacked-out 44mm titanium case, lashings of go-faster red and an automatic movement that easily keeps pace, the collection’s revamp is one of perfect timing inside and out.
44mm titanium case with 200m water resistance
Calibre 16 automatic movement with 42-hour power reserve
BALTIC HERMETIQUE DUAL TIME ENDUROPALE EDITION
Baltic are the quintessential microbrand done good and the Hermetique Dual Time, is a good indicator as to why. A tribute to the insane Enduropale motorbike event, with over 2,800 riders taking part, this novel take on a GMT watch has a coloured section marking out the first three hours of the race. The mix of grey, purple and teal also happens to look incredible.
37mm stainless steel case with 150m water resistance
Miyota 9039 automatic movement with 42-hour power reserve
MARCHAND CARBON GT CHRONOGRAPH
There’s a lot of titanium around these days but for real racers, lightweight means carbon fibre. Enter the Marchand Carbon GT Chronograph. Both the dial and bezel are made from woven carbon fibre with a stainless steel body for strength, giving you that intense checkerboard pattern across the whole watch. Backed by a Seiko Meca-Quartz for reliability and a smooth chronograph action, it’s the kind of watch that looks much more extreme than its price tag.
43mm stainless steel case with 100m water resistance
Seiko VK63 Meca-Quartz movement
TISSOT T-RACE MOTOGP AUTOMATIC
Uncompromising, high-octane and borderline insane, Tissot’s T-Race is a fitting nod to MotoGP. The massive, 45mm chunk of watch takes its design cues from bike parts, from the pump pushers and visible screws to the brake disc bezel. To hammer home that this limited edition is an automatic, the dial’s been removed to show the hard-working Valjoux movement underneath, with its 68-hour power reserve.
45mm stainless steel case with 100m water resistance
Valjoux A05.951 automatic movement with 68-hour power reserve
LAURENT FERRIER GRAND SPORT TOURBILLON
Sure, Laurent Ferrier don’t have quite the racing pedigree as other brands, but when it comes to watchmaking, the independent horologist is up there with the finest. Even amongst their rarefied range of watches, the Grand Sport Tourbillon with its salmon dial, titanium cushion case – designed in imitation of the curves of classic cars – and exquisite finishing stands out. It’s handsome enough to be believably worth more than most concours-winning motors.
44mm titanium case with 100m water resistance
LF619.01 manual-wind movement with 80-hour power reserve
RESERVOIR 390 FASTBACK
Plenty of watches draw from speedometers, but few take it quite as literally as Reservoir. Their obsession with retrograde displays is as close to the dashboard instrument as a timekeeper can get, after all, and the 390 Fastback revs up that design ethos. The aesthetics drawn from the 1967 American “Original Pony Car” make it the perfect co-pilot for a US road trip, pure rose-tinted Americana backed by a novel timekeeping display.
41.5mm stainless steel case with 50m water resistance
RSV-240 automatic movement with 56-hour power reserve
TECHNIK 4X TWINTIMER GRILLE EDITION
It’s not just hypercars that appreciate a hybrid of electric and mechanical. Novel microbrand Technik has dubbed their flagship the TwinTimer for just that reason as, on one side, you have a classic mechanical automatic movement, and on the other a hyper-accurate quartz. Finished with a design ripped straight off a luxury grille from something fast and stealthy, it’s an intense two-in-one that looks greater than the sum of its parts.
44.5mm stainless steel case with 50m water resistance
Sellita calibre SW100 automatic movement and ETA 901.001 quartz movement
BELL & ROSS BR-X5 RACING
They may no longer be a motorsport sponsor but that hasn’t stopped instrument-obsessed watchmaker Bell & Ross from taking plenty of cues from track racing. Rather than their usual cockpit flavoured pilots’ watches, the BR-X5 racing combines titanium and carbon fibre, dropping a chronograph function in favour of stripped-back readability. Even the dial’s been stripped back, for a front view fit for any workshop.
41mm titanium case with 100m water resistance
BR-CAL.323 automatic movement with 70-hour power reserve
ZENITH CHRONOMASTER REVIVAL COVER GIRL CARBON
Where the Rolex Daytona is the most recognisable racing watch in the world, it’s only thanks to Zenith’s El Primero movement – a movement that’s been a part of Zenith’s stable since the 60s. This latest version takes the blueprint of their retro revival collection and drops the retro. Instead, the entire case and dial have been given a black, carbon composite makeover, as lightweight as any monocoque cockpit, with intense alternating black-and-white chronograph subdial rings. It’s a lot to look at and nothing at all on the wrist.
37mm carbon composite case with 50m water resistance
El Primero automatic movement with 50-hour power reserve
OMOLOGATO ARNAGE 24H GMT
As they shift from cool quartz to fully automatic, the latest from racing-obsessed British brand Omologato is a typically deep automotive cut. Named after Le Man’s famous Arnage corner, the new watch taps into the ongoing fascination of 70s-flavoured integrated bracelet watches with all their industrial facets, while remaining temptingly accessible, complete with a 24 hour GMT function. Le Mans, 24-hours, see what they did there?
41mm stainless steel case
Miyota 9075 automatic movement with 41-hour power reserve
AUTODROMO GROUP B NIGHT STAGE
Forget vintage classics or F1, Autodromo’s series of choice is straight from the 80s: the dirt-chewing, ground-defying, boxy beasts of Group B. This version takes all that energy and all those flat planes and throws in a healthy dose of neon orange against a backdrop of midnight blue. In a mix of titanium and steel, it’s serious stuff on an even more serious integrated bracelet. Smell the horsepower.
39mm titanium and stainless steel case with 50m water resistance
Miyota 9015 automatic movement with 42-hour power reserve
