The Rolex – System 1 sponsorship: making the world’s high watch even greater
Rolex turned the official System 1 timekeeper again in 2013, and the manufacturers have since confirmed to be an incredible match. In a sport the place milliseconds matter, it might be tough to discover a higher associate than Rolex.
In keeping with Forbes, Rolex pay an estimated annual price of $50 million to System 1 to ensure that their brand to be plastered on automobiles, drivers and promoting boards at race tracks. While this price could seem extreme to some, aligning with a high stage sport like F1 makes lots of sense for one of the crucial iconic watchmakers on this planet. Rolex epitomise class, and there aren’t many sports activities classier than F1. The ten 12 months contract signed in 2013 has seen many fascinating collaborations starting from signature restricted version watches to the official Rolex Pit Lane Clock. Take a deep dive into this particular partnership, and study why Rolex determined to sponsor System 1…
The historic Rolex-Motorsports hyperlink
While the deal to turn into F1’s official time keeper and international associate was signed comparatively just lately, Rolex’s presence in motorsport spans a long time. The Swiss watchmaker have had a presence in racing going again to 1935 when Sir Malcolm Campbell became the first driver to break 300mph, whilst wearing a Rolex. Campbell was recognized to be an enormous fan of Rolex watches and he helped develop the model within the racing world by introducing Rolex to different drivers. This love was reciprocated by Rolex because the momentous feat was celebrated with the creation of a restricted version look ahead to the ‘Velocity King’- the Malcolm Campbell Oyster.
This partnership they’d established with Campbell propelled them to the highest of the racing world, as Rolex turned synonymous with excessive pace racing. They constructed a repute for making one of the best look ahead to sport, resulting from Rolex watches having an iconic ‘oyster case’. The partnership between Rolex and motorsport was consolidated within the Sixties with the start of one of the crucial fashionable watch fashions ever- the Rolex Daytona. Daytona is not only any previous metropolis in Florida, it’s rooted within the historical past of motorsport. Daytona is home to the ‘Daytona 500,’ the most prestigious NASCAR race. Its compacted sand beaches also make it the ideal place for drivers to attempt to break speed records– this noticed Daytona turn into the pace capital of the world.
The Rolex Daytona has since turn into one of the crucial fascinating watch fashions, with potential patrons having to endure an extended wait simply to have an opportunity at shopping for the look ahead to listing worth. Rolex’s hyperlink with the town itself, and its wealthy historical past of excessive pace racing, can also be seen by means of the ’24 Hours of Daytona,’ also referred to as the ‘Rolex 24 at Daytona’. It is likely one of the hottest occasions within the endurance racing world, and profitable drivers every obtain their very own particular Rolex Daytona.
Because of the success of their partnership with Campbell, Rolex determined to develop in motorsport, and so they accelerated their development by partnering with different high drivers. An excellent instance of this was Sir Jackie Stewart becoming a member of the Rolex model as an official ambassador in 1968. Sir Jackie Stewart had an illustrious System 1 profession, participating in 99 races and profitable 3 world championships (1969, 1971, and 1973). In 2012 he was made Grand Marshal of the 50th anniversary edition of the Rolex 24 At Daytona, 50 years after he was gifted a Rolex Daytona for a legendary victory within the 1968 Monaco Grand Prix.
The particular relationship with Sir Jackie Stewart was invaluable to Rolex. Being aligned with such an iconic F1 driver helped them battle off fierce competitors from rival watchmakers for the 2012 sponsorship deal. Stewart revealed that he was heavily involved in the deal, and that he was known as by the CEO of F1 on the time, Bernie Ecclestone, to assist join the 2 manufacturers. It’s as if this partnership was merely meant to be.
System 1’s relationship with watchmakers
On the opposite aspect of the partnership, System 1 have a particular historical past with watchmakers. Naturally, in a sport the place milliseconds matter, partnerships with high manufacturers have been widespread. This may be seen at the moment as different luxurious watchmakers sponsor F1 drivers and groups. For instance, Richard Mille sponsor each Ferrari and McLaren. Luxurious watches are sometimes donned by drivers, and identical to Rolex did with icons like Campbell and Stewart, many of those manufacturers have partnered with fashionable F1 drivers. Lewis Hamilton’s deal with IWC sees him receive $2 million a year!
The significance of timekeeping within the sport has additionally been highlighted as varied watchmakers have taken on the position of ‘Official Timekeeper’. Heuer have been answerable for officiating the timekeeping within the 1970’s, earlier than Longines took management within the 80’s. The rebranded TAG Heuer gained again management within the 1990’s, and Hublot assumed the position earlier than Rolex turned the ‘Official Timekeeper,’ from the 2013 season.
Why do Rolex sponsor F1?
Some should be questioning ‘Why does Rolex sponsor F1?’ so it’s vital to underline once more how particular the partnership is. The partnership marks two manufacturers with intertwined values and histories coming collectively. F1 and Rolex each imply luxurious and they’re undoubtedly within the higher echelons of their respective fields. Being a sport the place there are solely 20 drivers, competing for 10 groups, F1 is aligned with the exclusivity of Rolex. The standard of Rolex watches is one more reason for his or her desirability, and this worth of high quality can also be seen in F1- groups are continuously in search of new methods to innovate their automobiles and make them that millisecond quicker.
On a fundamental stage, sponsoring one of many world’s hottest sports activities has apparent advantages, particularly seeing as it’s now breaking into markets everywhere in the world. Being the F1 international associate means Rolex get to take pleasure in this development as much more eyes, in much more markets, are on the model.
It’s additionally essential to notice the partnership isn’t merely for present, Rolex are answerable for the maintenance of timing tools. As beforehand talked about, F1 races may be determined by a fraction of a second, and proper now you’d battle to discover a model extra dependable than Rolex to assist keep the accuracy of outcomes.
