McLaren F1 Team

Over the past 50 years, the McLaren team has made a name for itself at the highest levels of motor racing, with the brand’s name being inextricably linked with innovation in the sport. Its reputation – built on tireless technical innovation, meticulous attention to detail and countless track wins – is a perfect fit with Richard Mille’s philosophy. The two brands also share the same passion for modern technology, state-of-the-art design and precision engineering.

This partnership is all the more important for Richard Mille as he vividly remembers when McLaren first introduced an entirely carbon fibre monocoque to Formula 1 back in 1981. The technology would go on to revolutionise the world of motor racing. Many years later, the watchmaking brand managed to apply the same technical solution to its luxury watches by creating a carbon nanofibre structure for their baseplates.

McLaren Racing has just one mission: to win Grand Prix and world championships. To achieve this, its technicians must constantly design, build and operate Formula 1 cars at the highest levels of competition. This requires concentration, ambition, imagination, dedication and microscopic attention to detail. In a word – excellence. This passion for technical innovation and design has inspired the brand and the McLaren F1 Team to pursue several joint creations.

Their exceptional partnership gave rise to the RM 50-03, released in 2017. The University of Manchester worked with Richard Mille and the McLaren F1 Team to design the lightest mechanical chronograph in the world, combining cutting-edge research in graphene with precision engineering. It is precisely this team effort that drives Richard Mille’s engineers to continually push the limits of Fine Watchmaking.