Tag Archives: Racing

Press Release – Omega Speedmaster Racing

Omega Speedmaster Racing Co-Axial 326.32.40.50.06.001

Omega Speedmaster Racing Co-Axial 326.32.40.50.06.001

When the OMEGA Speedmaster was introduced in 1957, it was valued by motorsport and rally drivers for its chronograph performance and for its design aesthetics. In fact, its dial design was inspired by the dashboards of Italian cars of the time; it was also the first chronograph whose tachymetric scale was repositioned from the dial to the bezel.

March 5th 2012 – read more below the gallery

The very first print advertisement for the OMEGA Speedmaster included copy that said, “Our picture shows two sports car enthusiasts racing the clock . . . the clock being no clock at all but the new Omega high-precision wrist computer, the Speedmaster.”

The new Speedmaster Racing honours the chronograph’s decades-long connection to motor racing – before the Speedmaster was worn on the Moon or at the North and South Poles, it was found on the wrists of men and women driving high-performance automobiles.

The OMEGA Speedmaster Racing chronograph has a 40 mm stainless steel case with a matt black aluminium tachymetric ring on its bezel. It is offered in a choice of grey, grey/yellow or grey red tachymetric scaling. The screw-in caseback features the familiar Seahorse emblem.

The dial and sub-dials are available in the range of colour combinations described in the watch’s technical specifications.  The 30-minute and 12-hour counters and the small seconds hand sub-dial are textured with a triangular “Clous de Paris” pattern. There is a date window at the 6 o’clock position. The hour and minute hands as well as the hour markers are coated with Super-LumiNova.

The Speedmaster Racing is powered by an exclusive OMEGA calibre 3330 has a column-wheel chronograph mechanism and is equipped with a Co-Axial escapement and an Si14 silicon balance spring. The combination delivers such reliable timekeeping performance and stability that the chronograph comes with a full four-year warranty.

The Speedmaster Racing is presented with either a stainless steel bracelet or a black rubber strap. It is water resistant to 10 bar / 100 metres / 330 feet.

It has been 55 years since OMEGA announced the launch of a chronograph ideally suited for calculating the speed of racing cars. More than half a century later, the Speedmaster

Press Release – A Speedmaster Racing with carbon dial

Omega Speedmaster Racing 3552.59.00

Omega Speedmaster Racing 3552.59.00

The OMEGA Speedmaster was originally conceived for those who needed to rely on precision timekeeping: scientists, engineers, athletes and the like. At the time of its launch in 1957, nobody could have predicted that the Speedmaster would also be chosen to keep track of time on the world’s first manned spaceflight missions, notably taking it to the Moon several times and leading to a vital role on the Apollo 13 mission, where it timed the firing of the rockets to help the crew return safely to Earth. More recently, the Speedmaster’s racing links are illustrated by five-time Formula 1 world champion Michael Schumacher, who is both an ambassador for and an avid collector of the Speedmaster. The new Speedmaster Racing offers a contemporary interpretation of the racing theme whilst maintaining the unmistakable and classic look of the Speedmaster.

April 4th 2003 – read more below the gallery

The first-ever advertisement for the OMEGA Speedmaster in 1958 presented the new chronograph as a watch “for men who reckon time in seconds”. The picture accompanying the advertisement showed a co-driver timing the speed of a car over a test mile. In a time before computers, the Speedmaster was the perfect instrument for calculating the exact speed of a vehicle or the hourly output of a machine, which could be read off at a glance using the tachometer scale on the watch’s bezel. The tachometer scale, etched into the black aluminium ring on the brushed steel bezel, remains to this day the unmistakable characteristic of an OMEGA Speedmaster.

The Speedmaster Racing marries this classic Speedmaster look with a modern interpretation of the dial, in which the traditional matt black colour is replaced by black carbon fibre, a high-tech material used in Formula 1 construction. The sporty look of the dial is completed by luminous hour markers in Super Luminova with red outlining and the “RACING” inscription on the dial in white letters with a red outline.

The exclusive OMEGA calibre 3301 used in the Speedmaster Racing fulfils the original remit for the Speedmaster to be a robust and reliable chronograph – a claim that remains true today. The self-winding chronograph movement has a power reserve of 55 hours and is also an officially certified chronometer. It is fitted with a vertical coupling, which means that there is no delay in the chronograph hand when the chronograph is started, and a column wheel, which ensures precision start, stop and reset functions for the chronograph hand and totalisers. This superlative chronograph (only few watch manufacturers have mastered the sophisticated techniques required to produce column-wheel mechanisms) is perfectly complemented by the OMEGA free sprung-balance without index, which ensures that the regulating power of this timepiece remains excellent over the long term.

A screw-in case back (with RACING inscription in red) and OMEGA double gasket crown ensure that the stainless steel case is water resistant to 100 metres and a scratch-resistant, anti-reflective sapphire crystal protects the unique look of the dial. The Speedmaster Racing is available with a stainless steel bracelet with RACING inscription on the safety clasp or a black alligator leather strap with a stainless steel foldover clasp. It is the perfect timepiece for anyone looking for a chronograph of distinction with an unmistakably sporty edge.

Press Release – Speedmaster Day-Date Racing Michael Schumacher

Omega Speedmaster Day-Date Racing 3529.50.00

Omega Speedmaster Day-Date Racing 3529.50.00

In the 2002 Formula 1 race season, Michael Schumacher secured an historic fifth world championship driver’s title. This master of speed has been an OMEGA ambassador since 1995 and has comfortably secured the Formula 1 driver’s championship titles over the past three years. In celebration of each of these victories, OMEGA launched special limited editions of the Speedmaster collection that Michael Schumacher promotes. The latest model, celebrating Schumacher’s fifth world championship title, is the Speedmaster Day-Date Racing.

February 15th 2003 – read more below the gallery

Michael Schumacher entered the Formula 1 history books in 2002 by equalling Juan Manuel Fangio’s record of 5 Formula 1 World Championship titles, which was established back in the 1950s. Schumacher currently reigns supreme as the world’s most successful driver, having won a total of 945 points in his career to the end of 2002 – more than any other Formula 1 driver in history. The 2003 limited-edition OMEGA Speedmaster Day-Date Racing is, however, linked with motorsport by more than just its name and OMEGA’s ambassador Michael Schumacher. Its design traits clearly place it in the context of Formula 1 and thus offer the perfect collector’s piece for fans of this sport. The dial is made of high-tech carbon fibre, for example, which gives an immediate indication of the watch’s special character. Another unique touch is the red outlining used for the RACING inscription, hour markers and dates on the dial. The ultimate limited-edition cachet is conferred by the special case back, which bears the inscription “WORLD CHAMPION 2002” in red and Michael Schumacher’s signature in black.

The same proven OMEGA calibre 1151 found in the standard Day-Date models is used in this limited-edition model, with day, month, date, hour, minute and continuous seconds display. The self-winding movement, which has a power reserve of 44 hours, also has a chronograph function displaying elapsed times to within ¼ of a second using the central chronograph hand. Even the chronograph sub-dials at 12 o’clock (minutes) and 6 o’clock (hours) have an unmistakable F1 touch – the former incorporates the day and month displays with the Formula 1 race day, Sunday, highlighted in red, whilst the latter has a chequered flag background. The sub-dial at 9 o’clock comprises an additional arrowhead 24 hour hand (GMT) in addition to the usual continuous seconds hand. A separate central arrowhead hand points to the date on the 1 – 31 scale around the circumference of the dial.

No Speedmaster would be complete, of course, without the tachometric scale on the bezel, allowing the calculation of speeds from 60 to 500 km/h based on a 1000m reference distance. Equally important standard features of every Speedmaster are the water resistance guaranteed to a depth of 30 metres and the scratch-resistant sapphire crystal with interior anti-reflective treatment that protects the distinctive look of the resolutely sporty dial. Production of this model, which is available exclusively with the stainless steel Speedmaster bracelet, is limited to 5,555 numbered units. Experience with the previous limited-edition Speedmaster Racing models has shown that collectors and Formula 1 fans alike appreciate the distinctive style of these timepieces. The 2003 Speedmaster Day-Date Racing is sure to be no exception.