TAG Heuer have once again joined forces with Team Ikuzawa and Bamford Watch Department for a new interpretation of the vaunted Carrera.
Tetsu Ikuzawa is one of the most iconic names in Japanese motorsport history with the 83-year-old’s legacy kept alive by his daughter and the Team Ikuzawa brand.
The sporty, racing-inspired watch is the second time TAG and Ikuzawa after their 2023 collaboration and the TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph x Team Ikuzawa brings together the designs of George Bamford with the creativity of Mai Ikuzawa.
The watch is directly inspired by a Roadmaster stopwatch kept in the Ikuwawa archive, which became synonymous with the racing team during the driver 1970’s and 1980’s heyday. The idea was to take the design elements of the Roadmaster and incorporate them into the classic Carrera look, simultaneously keeping the piece modern and steeped in history.
The specific Carrera that has been used to reinterpret is the Glassbox model and the watch keeps the reference’s bezel-free design.
The dial has received a modern Japanese streetwear makeover and features a Clou de Paris texture in the iconic red and white of Team Ikuzawa’s colours. The dial also has a great deal in common with a standard stopwatch, featuring indexes instead of markers. The Team Ikuzawa signature is also printed at 6 o’clock on the dial while there is no seconds display.
The caseback is engraved with the signature of Team Ikuzawa and also celebrates the contribution of Bamford to the project, featuring their signature too.
Multiple straps for the watch are also available straight out of the box. As well as the standard steel, there is also the option for white leather and a red and white textile strap, both nods to motor racing.
Just 150 individually numbered pieces are going to come to market and they will be going for $10,500. Given the previous collaboration sold out, you’ll probably have to move quickly to obtain one.
TAG Heuer recently launched the Monaco Speed 12, a limited edition piece that takes inspiration from the twelve cylinder engine by having twelve incredibly striking pistons encircle the dial instead of hourmarkers.
Manufactured out of grade five titanium, the design of the dial is firmly within the boundaries of what you would expect from the Monaco, but the rotating pistons on the black dial elevate the watch and emphasise both the mechanical history of the model and technical ingenuity on display.
The mechanical theme is furthered by the open workings on the dial which allow the wear to see into the magic behind what makes the Monaco tick.
Just 50 of the Monaco Speed 12 have been created, each individually numbered, which is going to make this a hot collector’s item, especially since TAG appropriately launched the watch at the Monaco Grand Prix. The watch will retail for £66,000.
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