Minutes in motion with the latest Ingenieur, F1, and motorbikes

When Brad Pitt emailed the office of IWC Schaffhausen, the brief was clear: a custom prop watch designed for his upcoming film, F1 (releasing on June 27, 2025). Understandably, the email left IWC’s CEO, Christoph Grainger-Herr, stunned for a moment. After all, it's not every day that a Hollywood icon lands in your inbox, seeking a timepiece worthy of the silver screen.

Yet, what began as an email thread has turned tactile with the birth of a reimagined Ingenieur Automatic 40 (Reference 1832 from 1976). Tapping into the codes of precision and functionality, the limited-edition watch, worn by Brad’s character Sonny Hayes, has catapulted me into the high-octane world of Formula 1.

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Moments on Track

While tuning into the film’s trailer, my eyeballs hovered over Sonny’s wrist as he crouched on the racetrack—his hand, sifting through the gravel. At first glance, the Ingenieur appears sublime: more like a natural extension of his arm. Yet, on a closer look, its intent becomes clearer: to quantify and inform human’s sense of urgency.

Before we dive into the model and its storied influence, I’ll admit, my heart belongs to two wheels. Back in 2007, when I first kicked off my tennis coach’s motorbike, I had no idea that mastering the throttle would unlock a sense of freedom. I rode away from the sports complex, far and wide: chasing the rush that consumed me entirely. Breaking free from life’s banalities, time seemed to stretch and I found myself reveling in the fleeting nature of existence.

Over time, it became a ritual of navigating new tracks—while balancing minutes in motion. With every twist of the pedal, came a deliberate effort to anchor myself in the now, reaching for a moment that was already slipping through the fingers. Much like the contrast between stillness and split-second speeding, I found a parallel in Formula 1’s relentless momentum, where racetracks demanded linear focus, leaving little to no room for error.

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And just as Sonny’s Ingenieur glinted on the racetrack, it became lucid to me, how the pulse of time connects the dynamic worlds of motorbike and F1 racing. It dictates the unforeseen, the verge of action, the next absolute truth. In doing so, it urges you to pause and take a look at your watch, for in that split-second, it imparts a quiet wisdom—to take a reset, and realign with the march of time.

From 2 to 4 (wheels)

I could barely estimate the limits of this cognitive agility, when at the recent Monaco Grand Prix, McLaren’s Lando Norris shattered my pre-set expectations. He blazed through the tracks in a record time of 1:09.954 (under 70 seconds) driving his McLaren 765LT Spider! As he claimed the pole position – I found myself on the edge of my seat, watching his name go down in history, as the fastest driver ever at the Monaco racetrack. 

As someone who thrives on speed, the world of F1 came to me fast and hard. The sport demands drivers to make swift calls, often within 0.2 to 0.3 seconds, while navigating complex circuits at high speeds. A team endeavour, these skilled racers represent automobile giants like Ferrari, Mercedes, Renault and more, who unleash their roaring locomotive beasts for a year-long racing championship. Watching these machines come alive was nothing short of an adrenaline jolt; but what truly took my breath away was how the drivers navigated serpentine tracks with sharp movements.

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It took me back to my tryst with bikes—where no two roads were ever the same and each path offered a new hurdle to overcome. In all intensity, a rush of excitement would take over: mingled with the challenge of navigating the unknown. And in those rare moments, solitude turns into a palpable experience: you can almost touch it as you speed through life at a surreal pace. 

Yet in the middle of this alienating process, the resting watch emerges as a constant reminder of this tanngible world, grounding you and guiding you back to the truth of your existence.

A Rightful Place for the Ingenieur

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Small and almost understated, the Ingenieur Automatic 40 carries the weight of a profound moment. Before we dive into its features, it’s crucial to take a look at its history. When it debuted, the watch flew under the radar, recognised only by the brand's most dedicated collectors. A few years went by until the Maison recognised its need for complete modernisation, which, in turn, ushered its revival. Nicknamed “Jumbo,”  the reimagined 1973 Gerald Genta design went on to become an emblem of stainless steel luxury sports watches. 

Niche in its genre, the design garners not enough mention when Genta’s major accomplishments are discussed. A watch underdog? One could say. Yet, the model transcended its role as a timepiece to become a cultural icon of the 70s — capturing the zeitgeist of an era, hungry for transformation. Built with distinct design codes, the watch featured a slimmer case, a sunburst-finish dial, and a paddle-style seconds hand that propelled the time forward. 

Where Cinema Meets Horology

Combining its vintage ethos, the reimagined Ingenieur stood out to me as an ode to human ingenuity. Launched at the recent watch gala held in Geneva, team GMT India experienced this cinematic timepiece firsthand at IWC’s booth. Limited to 1000 pieces, the Ingenieur Automatic 40 features a grid-patterned green dial – based on colour codes and details inspired by the race cars of “APXGP” (the fictional team at the heart of the movie). The immersive booth at Palexpo also featured a wrecked F1 car, a striking prop inspired by Hayes’s dramatic crash scene (spoiler alert!).

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This prop watch is the result of a collaboration between IWC Schaffhausen and Cloister Watch Company, a design studio that specialises in creating bespoke timepieces from vintage watches. What fascinated me the most about this collaboration was how, as humans, we tease our imagination to utterly excessive yet undeniably cool limits ― setting benchmarks and stretching the scope of possibilities along the way.

In the film, the watch seamlessly becomes Hayes' muse, mirroring his rugged demeanor and in sync with nail-biting gear shifts. Offering high legibility for extreme racing conditions, the Ingenieur Automatic 40 mm is engineered to withstand and embrace the chaos of the track. Powered by the 3211 calibre movement, the timepiece is agnostic to the effects of magnetic fields — one of the classic Ingenieur traditions.

Maker’s Mark

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Directed by Joseph Kosinski and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, the film, F1, is set to capture the electrifying energy of Formula 1 races, where everything can change in a heartbeat. The Ingenieur serves as a trusted ally to Hayes, who, once retired, now returns to mentor a rookie, played by British actor Damson Idris.

Within the film’s mise en scène, IWC Schaffhausen will appear as one of the official sponsors of the fictional ‘APXGP’ team, with its name being visible on the race cars, the driver’s race suits and helmets, the team uniforms as well as in the garage. Additionally, timepieces from IWC’s Pilot’s Watches collection will be worn by different characters in the film and featured as the official team watches. 

Marking this enthralling partnership with the film F1, IWC Schaffhausen has also added three ‘APXGP’-inspired chronographs to its Pilot’s Watches collection. For an in-depth look at these high-performance chronographs, stay tuned for deep dives in our upcoming July edition.

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