Since 2016, French watchmaker Bell & Ross has been heavily involved in Formula One racing — more specifically, Renault’s F1 racing team, which changed its name to BWT Alpine F1 Team in 2021. Typically the watches that have come from this partnership over the years — almost all of which have been inspired by whatever current Alpine (née Renault) race car from that year — utilize Bell & Ross’ BR 03 series as its base, which makes sense considering the frequent use of perforated rubber straps and squared design language. However, up until now, the company’s BR 05 series has never been used as the template.
Sporting the livery colors of Alpine’s current A523 F1 car, the new BR 05 Chrono A523 features a 42mm satin-polished steel case and bezel, with a functional screw in each corner. As opposed to the entire watch, just the dial itself is given the black and blue colorway, with white accents and a small French flag at the bottom. Fitting for the race car premise, the pair of chronograph registers, activated by the pushers on the side, match the square shape of the watch itself. A classy integrated steel bracelet adorns the watch, increasing the piece’s wearability, although a version with a black and blue leather calfskin strap is available as well. Just like the other BR 05 Chrono models, the new A523 F1 edition runs on a Sellita-sourced BR-CAL.326 movement.
An upper-tiered version of the BR 01 and BR 03, the BR 05 debuted in 2019 and, while similar at first glance as the other two models, has some notable differences and upgrades. Although it shares the aviation cockpit design ethos of its brethren, the BR 05 sports a squared bezel as opposed to a circular one. Also, the cases tend to feature more metal all around, giving a more luxurious appearance.
Limited to just 500 pieces, the BR 05 Chrono A523 is up for grabs from Bell & Ross’ website for $7,200, with deliveries expected for the end of July.
