INTRODUCING: The TAG Heuer Monaco Gulf 2018 special edition

TAG Heuer have, much like Marty McFly and Doc Brown, gone back to the future with their latest partnership, with Gulf Oil International. If you’re not familiar with the world of historic Heuer, the pairing of the Swiss watchmaker and venerable oil company is perhaps surprising, but one larger-than-life character pulls it all together: Steve McQueen. In 1971, during the film Le Mans, McQueen wore a Heuer Monaco while driving a Porsche 917 emblazoned with Gulf’s distinctive blue and orange stripes.

Vital statistics

Now, it’s not just the car that has the livery, it’s also the special edition Monaco Gulf, a regular calibre 11-powered Monaco (much like this one), with a blue sunburst base, and bold powder blue and orange stripes on the right-hand side of the dial, and a Gulf Oil logo above the date at six. The strap is a nice blue perforated calf, with contrasting orange stitch.

First thoughts

Now, this isn’t the first Gulf-striped Monaco TAG Heuer have produced, not by a long shot, but this is a particularly nice interpretation, thanks largely to the choice of the classic calibre 11 Monaco as a base. And while the big bold stripes aren’t to everyone’s tastes, if you’re into classic motorsports, or even just down for wearing a big square watch like the Monaco, this might be the sort of watch to get your motor running.