Only Watch 2023 – Sport Auto 'On Track'

Only Watch is a charity auction with the goal of raising funds for research against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a genetic disease that affects the muscles in a progressive manner.

Once again, LAURENT FERRIER is proud to support Luc Pettavino and his team for this 10^th Only Watch event. For this occasion, LAURENT FERRIER has created a unique timepiece that embodies the history of the brand.

Designed as the piece that Laurent Ferrier and François Servanin, the two founders of the brand, wish they could have worn during their multiple adventures as racing drivers, the Sport Auto is here reinterpreted to offer an exclusive, brand-new dial.

RACING TRACK

According to Laurent Ferrier, the design and use of colours in a creative process are not just aesthetic choices but a way to express one’s personal experience and passion. The brand has long been involved with motor racing since François and Laurent joined forces more than once in the 1970s to take part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Their meeting and their friendship forged on the track led to the creation of the brand.

This new, distinctive dial features charcoal grey gradient shades that resemble the appearance of asphalt. Thanks to the white gold Assegai-shaped hands and drop-shaped indices combined with a white Super-LumiNova luminescent coating, it boasts enhanced legibility. On the outer edge of the dial, a track pattern alternating yellow and blue from 7 o'clock to 2 o'clock, together with a white transfer from 2 o'clock to 7 o'clock, acts as a boundary for the dial, evoking the speed bumps delimiting the racetrack. The hour-circle is surrounded by a green transfer. The logo, the central cross, as well as the thin transfer that underlines the bevelled window, are all matching in white. The window, positioned at 3 o'clock, displays the date. Like the Tourbillon models, to round off the composition is the tone-on-tone transfer indicating the 'Sport Auto' movement, between the central hands and the small second. Finally, the white small second combined with the tone-on-tone indication 'OW', in contrast with the entire dial, appears to indicate the finish line or the very objective of the race played on this unique timepiece. Protected by a domed sapphire crystal, this exceptional dial is housed in the Sport case.

SPORTY LINES

The case is made of grade 5 titanium and measures 41.5 mm in diameter. On the barrel-shaped case middle, LAURENT FERRIER added a contrasting bezel with softer features, an evolution of the Square case. The different finishes on each of its faces provide it with an aerodynamic appearance. The bezel has a circular satin-brushed finish that is in contrast with its mirror-polished sides as well as the vertical satin-brushed case middle.

An integrated bracelet in grade 5 titanium completes the case, evoking the combination between vertical satin-brushed and polished sides. The sloping sides of the central links are also polished. These different finishes provide this timepiece with a very mechanical appearance: another tribute to traditional watchmaking, as well as motor racing.

The iconic ball-shaped crown of the LF Maison is screwed down and elegantly integrated into the case middle. The lines of this crown allow a pleasant handling of the features in order to initiate the automatic movement. This screwed-down crown, combined with 120 metres water resistance, ensures the comfort of the wearer on a daily basis. 

AUTOMATIC CALIBRE

The second automatic calendar movement of the Maison, the LF270.01 calibre, is the result of an exclusive development by LAURENT FERRIER. While remaining a subtle tribute to the Micro-Rotor with a natural escapement calibre, its style is more distinctive and sportier, and the movement is entirely designed, decorated, assembled and adjusted in LAURENT FERRIER workshops.

Less delicate than the natural escapement and more suitable for sports watches, this is a Swiss lever escapement exploiting an off-centred micro-oscillating weight self-winding system. For the purpose of providing significant benefits in terms of shock and vibration resistance, this movement is equipped with a unidirectional ball bearing as a replacement for the traditional pawl-fitted system. Like a balance wheel, the micro-rotor is provided with an oscillating weight made of platinum 950, placed directly between the plate and the bridge in order to ensure ideal stability and maximised winding power. Once fully wound, this calibre offers a power reserve of more than 72 hours.

A FANTASTIC EYE FOR DETAIL

A sapphire glass case back, secured using special screws, similar to those used in automotive sports, reveals a movement whose architecture and finishing evoke the main codes of the brand's first automatic movement.

Each LF 270.01 calibre alone requires more than 139 manual finishing operations. In particular, the bridge of the micro-rotor movement is meticulously decorated by hand: the angles are softened and then finished using gentian and diamantine, while the surface is mirror polished. The movement features several inward angles, multiple zinc-polished surfaces and numerous satin-brushed and circular-grained finishes, all handcrafted in LAURENT FERRIER workshops. The ruthenium-coated bridges feature a horizontal satin-brushed finish.

While bearing witness to the power of encounters and passions, the 'Sport Auto On Track' is a tribute to both the rich history of LAURENT FERRIER and that of Only Watch. Certainly, the design and engineering of the Sport Auto On Track will attract enthusiasts and collectors alike, and we hope that its success will help raise substantial funds to support this cause.