TAG Heuer’s Newest Watch Is a High-Tech Tribute to a Legendary Formula 1 Driver
StyleThe Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna honors the late Brazilian racer Ayrton Senna.By Oren HartovOctober 31, 2024Save this storySaveSave this storySaveWant more insider watch coverage? Get Box + Papers, GQ's newsletter devoted to the watch world, sent to your inbox every Friday. Sign up here.Wherever there’s legendary racing, TAG Heuer is nearly always involved. Whether the brand is outfitting Steve McQueen in a Monaco for Le Mans or furnishing Ferrari drivers with solid-gold versions of its Carrera, its ties to motorsports run incredibly deep. So, naturally, the late legendary Formula 1 racer Ayrton Senna was a fan, and even wore one of TAG’s pieces while driving. Now, to coincide with the release of a Netflix series based on the Brazilian driver’s life set to premiere at the end of November, TAG is releasing the Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna.The new watch plays into the Carrera’s long history in motorsports by honoring the legacy of Senna, who tragically died on the track at age 34 in 1994. Senna famously wore the digital TAG Heuer Senna S/EL Link Chronograph S25.706C, which will be featured in the Netflix show. However, the new piece from the Swiss watchmaker imagines a world where Senna wore a much more mechanically impressive piece. The Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna is a mechanical watch with a tourbillon, the spinning complication that’s said to make your watch’s timekeeping immune to the effects of gravity.The new Senna watch is housed in TAG Heuer’s flagship Carrera. The model is based on a timepiece designed by Jack Heuer and released in 1963. TAG revamped the Carrera in 2023 with the invention of the “Glassbox” design that essentially removes the bezel and gives the piece a more slimmed-down appearance. The versatile watch plays host to all manner of special editions, while its more complicated iterations impress with their integration of high-tech materials and precious metals.Senna wearing his TAG Heuer Senna S/EL Link Chronograph S25.706C TAG empties its entire bag of tricks when working on its Senna watches. Previous releases in 2018 and 2019 also matched race-ready chronograph models with tourbillons. The latest Senna comes in a 44-mm Grade 2 titanium case and features a forged carbon 400-km tachymeter inscribed with Senna’s name. Chronograph counters at 3 and 9 o’clock have azure scales and open-worked yellow hands, while Senna’s “S” branding pokes out from behind the 12-hour totalizer. The tourbillon, meanwhile, is visible above 6 o’clock, while a caseback depicting Senna in his racing helmet partially reveals the automatic Calibre TH20-09 movement.Paired to a blue integrated rubber strap with a titanium folding clasp, the Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna certainly looks like the type of watch that Senna might have worn racing had he begun his career in the 2020s. The brushed and sandblasted titanium case, forged carbon bezel, domed sapphire crystal, and skeletonized dial bear the high-tech hallmarks of a thoroughly modern racing watch and reflect the advanced technologies prevalent in F1 racing. The presence of a tourbillon, of course, is somewhat superfluous to a strict tool watch—although it’s hard to fault its inclusion for the sheer cool factor: TAG Heuer is one of few major watch brands that offers tourbillon-equipped watches for under $50,000. (That might seem like a lot, but consider that your “basic” tourbillon watch from a brand like Jaeger-LeCoultre or Omega might run you close to or well into the six figures.)Most PopularCultureIs Sturgill Simpson the Greatest Live Act in Music Right Now?By Chris CohenGroomingThe Best Shampoo for Every Type of HairBy Adam HurlyCultureCan Fontaines DC Make Rock Bands Cool Again?By Olivia OvendenAt 37,000 Swiss francs (roughly $42,679), this 500-piece limited edition is by no means for the faint of wallet. But considering its tech-forward build and the legendary driver it honors, the price seems all the more reasonable.
Want more insider watch coverage? Get Box + Papers, GQ's newsletter devoted to the watch world, sent to your inbox every Friday. Sign up here.
Wherever there’s legendary racing, TAG Heuer is nearly always involved. Whether the brand is outfitting Steve McQueen in a Monaco for Le Mans or furnishing Ferrari drivers with solid-gold versions of its Carrera, its ties to motorsports run incredibly deep. So, naturally, the late legendary Formula 1 racer Ayrton Senna was a fan, and even wore one of TAG’s pieces while driving. Now, to coincide with the release of a Netflix series based on the Brazilian driver’s life set to premiere at the end of November, TAG is releasing the Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna.
The new watch plays into the Carrera’s long history in motorsports by honoring the legacy of Senna, who tragically died on the track at age 34 in 1994. Senna famously wore the digital TAG Heuer Senna S/EL Link Chronograph S25.706C, which will be featured in the Netflix show. However, the new piece from the Swiss watchmaker imagines a world where Senna wore a much more mechanically impressive piece. The Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna is a mechanical watch with a tourbillon, the spinning complication that’s said to make your watch’s timekeeping immune to the effects of gravity.
The new Senna watch is housed in TAG Heuer’s flagship Carrera. The model is based on a timepiece designed by Jack Heuer and released in 1963. TAG revamped the Carrera in 2023 with the invention of the “Glassbox” design that essentially removes the bezel and gives the piece a more slimmed-down appearance. The versatile watch plays host to all manner of special editions, while its more complicated iterations impress with their integration of high-tech materials and precious metals.
TAG empties its entire bag of tricks when working on its Senna watches. Previous releases in 2018 and 2019 also matched race-ready chronograph models with tourbillons. The latest Senna comes in a 44-mm Grade 2 titanium case and features a forged carbon 400-km tachymeter inscribed with Senna’s name. Chronograph counters at 3 and 9 o’clock have azure scales and open-worked yellow hands, while Senna’s “S” branding pokes out from behind the 12-hour totalizer. The tourbillon, meanwhile, is visible above 6 o’clock, while a caseback depicting Senna in his racing helmet partially reveals the automatic Calibre TH20-09 movement.
Paired to a blue integrated rubber strap with a titanium folding clasp, the Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon x Senna certainly looks like the type of watch that Senna might have worn racing had he begun his career in the 2020s. The brushed and sandblasted titanium case, forged carbon bezel, domed sapphire crystal, and skeletonized dial bear the high-tech hallmarks of a thoroughly modern racing watch and reflect the advanced technologies prevalent in F1 racing. The presence of a tourbillon, of course, is somewhat superfluous to a strict tool watch—although it’s hard to fault its inclusion for the sheer cool factor: TAG Heuer is one of few major watch brands that offers tourbillon-equipped watches for under $50,000. (That might seem like a lot, but consider that your “basic” tourbillon watch from a brand like Jaeger-LeCoultre or Omega might run you close to or well into the six figures.)
At 37,000 Swiss francs (roughly $42,679), this 500-piece limited edition is by no means for the faint of wallet. But considering its tech-forward build and the legendary driver it honors, the price seems all the more reasonable.
