Bremont celebrates Williams Racing partnership with the WR-22 chronograph and racing box set

D.C. Hannay

The 2022 Formula 1 racing season is set to kick off this month in Bahrain, and motorheads the world over couldn’t be more primed. Interest is at an all-time high, considering all the on and off-track drama from last season, the success of Netflix’s Formula 1 – Drive To Survive series, the effects of the pandemic, and a shocking series of driver shufflings that made 2021 one of the most compelling seasons ever. As an American fan, I’m stoked that not one but two races will be held in the States (Miami and Austin), as F1 gains a foothold here in what’s traditionally been more of a rest-of-the-world sport. 

One of the more intriguing teams this year has to be Britain’s Williams Racing, with this season’s addition of former Red Bull pilot Alex Albon joining Williams’ Nicholas Latifi. Both drivers are young guns (in their mid-twenties), but have several seasons’ experience under their belts, and there is tremendous potential to make some meaningful gains. And another British company, Bremont Watches, is one of Williams’ corporate sponsors, and you can bet they’ll be flying the Union Jack alongside the team as the season progresses. 

Debuting this season, Bremont is introducing a new Williams co-branded chronograph, as well as a limited-to-45 edition boxed set to mark their continued partnership with the team. British manufacturing is a point of pride with the company. It’s not long ago that UK watch manufacturing was on the ropes, and Bremont has played no small part in the effort to bring it back. 

Bremont WR-22

First up, the new WR-22 chronograph, and it’s a looker, with its motorsport-approved panda dial, accented with racy punctuations of Williams’ signature blue palette. The overall colour scheme nods back to classics from Heuer and Zenith, while still being very Bremont. Honestly speaking, it just looks fast. 

The case

The case is a not-insubstantial 43mm in diameter, with a lug-to-lug of 49mm, a 22mm lug width, and a rather tall 15.8mm case height. Bremont’s signature three-piece TripTick case construction is utilised, with the centre section treated with black PVD. There are several models in the Bremont range that feature this same visual cue, and I rather like it. The lugs feature the subtle contouring akin to other Bremont models, and like Omega’s twisted lyre lugs, I feel the look has become a part of their visual language. A race-ready bidirectional tachymeter bezel with a black ceramic insert frames the dial nicely.

The dial

The white dial itself sports the black subdials of classic panda references of the past, and features applied indices, a black PVD handset, a bright red chrono hand, and vintage-inspired triangular subdial hands, all kept visible when the lights go down by glowing blue Super-LumiNova. A colour-matched date wheel peeks out at 6, and it’s integrated so nicely into the subdial, it took me a moment to notice it. Time setting and chrono functions are actuated via the screwdown crown and pushers, the look of which recalls later Daytonas, and renders the whole affair good for 200 metres of water resistance.

The movement

Moving ‘round to the caseback, it’s secured by five stainless screws, and affords a good view of the movement through the exhibition crystal. Sure, a solid caseback could shave a few millimetres from the overall height, but that would take away the fun that Bremont’s have with this movement’s decoration. Said movement? A modified Calibre 13 ¼, which is chronometer-rated. It has a beat rate of 4Hz, a 42-hour power reserve, and is very pretty to look at, with blued screws and engine-turned finishing. The uber-cool Easter egg, however, is the custom tungsten rotor made to look like the Williams F1 car’s wheel, with the “Williams Racing” text on the outer edge resembling the lettering on a racing tire.

The strap

The WR-22 is available on a nicely finished stainless bracelet or Alcantara strap, the material used to fabricate racing steering wheels and seats. In a nice race-inspired touch, the packaging utilises carbon fibre, and includes an actual used wheel nut from the race cars. That’s some pretty good fan service for F1 aficionados, if you ask me.

Williams Box Set (Limited to 45 pieces)

But for the hardcore superfan, Bremont has launched a limited-edition Racing Box Set that includes a very special experience package. The set includes both the FW44 Chrono and the FW44 Classic timepieces. Specs on the FW44 chrono are much the same as the FW-22, with some key cosmetic differences. Firstly, the case is fully blacked-out DLC, which visually reduces the apparent size, and gives the watch a sinister, stealthy appearance. The black Alcantara strap features contrast stitching, calling to mind the upholstery of a supercar interior, and it looks the business. I might have wished for a matching blacked-out bracelet as part of the package, but as is, it’s note-perfect for the armchair racer in everyone. The handset is another point of difference from the FW22, with stick subdial hands replacing the triangular ones. The subdials themselves feature slight variations from the FW-22, but retain the Team Williams colours. 

The other watch in the set, the FW44 Classic, is a time-only reference with a lovely blue and white dial, bringing a nice continuity to the set in the team colours. It’s housed in a satin brushed stainless 40mm Trip-Tick case that features a blackened midsection similar to the chrono versions. Case dimensions are Goldilocks-perfect, with a 49mm lug-to-lug, 20mm lug width, and 12.5mm case height. The art deco-inspired dial is rendered in Williams’ Oxford Blue, with a matching blue outer track, sword-style hands, and tasteful red accents on the minute and second hands. The hands are nickel-plated, as are the applied indices, and all of it features a generous application of Super-LumiNova. Dial text is kept to a minimum, and a handsome framed date window appears at 6. The dial is protected with an anti-reflective domed sapphire crystal, furthering the vintage look. The crown screws down, and water resistance is more than adequate at 100 metres. 

On the flipside, the visible caseback is secured by four screws, where one can view the modified Calibre 11 ½ movement that shows off its engine-turned decoration and Williams Racing customised rotor. The autowind movement has 25 jewels and a beat rate of 4Hz, with a 38-hour power reserve. And like Bremont’s full line, it’s chronometer rated, good for -4/+6 seconds a day accuracy. The strap is a super-soft nubuck in matching Oxford Blue, perfectly complementing the sporty dress vibe. 

All told, the FW44 Classic is a versatile, handsome watch that easily dresses up or down depending on the occasion. The set of both watches is packaged in a special case constructed using race-inspired carbon fibre, and includes a wheel nut from an actual FW40/41 race chassis. 

The Experience

About that “Race Day” fan experience included with the set: Suffice it to say, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the F1 fanatic. You’ll be hosted at the Grove, Williams’ HQ in Oxfordshire during the 2022 Singapore and Mexico Grand Prix race weekends respectively, with a guided tour of the team headquarters and Williams Racing Museum. You’ll learn all about Williams’ racing history, and also be invited into the “Mission Control” room, where the UK-based tech team communicates live with the race team, supplying critical race metrics to the drivers and pit crew. A unique experience for any Formula 1 buff, it’s a hell of a way to watch the race, and it makes a great gift (wink wink).

Pricing and availability:

The Bremont WR-22 retails for $9750 AUD on Alcantara, and $10,400 AUD on the bracelet. The limited-to-45 Williams Box Set retails for $27,995 AUD including the exclusive fan experience package. Further information is available here