Breitling SA was founded in 1884 in Saint-Imier, Switzerland, by watchmaker and businessman Léon Breitling. The business was later run by Bretling’s son Gaston, and grandson Willy, before the Breitling name was purchased by Ernst Schneider of the Sicura Company in 1979. Today, Breitling is one of very few watch companies that enjoys mainstream brand recognition from non-watch enthusiasts.
Breitling has acquired Universal Geneve in 2023, and Gallet in 2025.
Worn by F1 Drivers
Best known for their aviation watches, Breitling has had some connections with both two and four-wheeled Grand Prix racing. A number of Formula One drivers wore Breitling Navitimers in the 1960’s including Jim Clark, Graham Hill, Jackie Oliver, and even Jo Siffert of Heuer fame. To this day, the ref. 806 with black dial and white sub-registers is nicknamed the ‘Jim Clark’. Breitling also has some shared history with Heuer and Hamilton in “Project 99”, their joint venture to develop the world’s first automatic chronographs.
Renault F1
In the 1990s, Breitling released a Chronomat Renault F1 Team special edition based on the Breitling Chronomat B13048. It sports a blue dial with gold subdials, and featuring the words “Renault F1 by Breitling 1884”. The Breitling website dates the watch as “1990s” and includes a brief mention that it was designed for the Renault Formula One team, although this was during an era when Renault strictly operated as an engine suppliers.
Judging by superficial similarities in the font, the Renault branding on the dial appears to be a reasonably close match to the logo on the engine of the Williams FW14B.
Some sources have claimed that this timepiece may have been produced in honor of French driver Alain Prost, who last drove for Renault in 1983.
Japan Racers Squad
Both Formula One and MotoGP have been represented in Breitling’s Japan Racers Squad ambassadors. Announced in late 2018, the impressive lineup included Red Bull Air Race pilot Yoshihide “Yoshi” Muroya, former F1 and current IndyCar driver Takuma Sato, and former MotoGP rider Takaaki Nakagami.
Related Pages
References
https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/chronomatic-heuer-breitling-hamilton-50th-anniversary
https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/f1-watches-best-ever
https://www.safonagastrocrono.club/racing-watches-11-breitling-f1/
https://www.breitling.com/us-en/icons/chronomat/
http://www.donindiano.net/watches/breitling/chronomat/special_editions
https://www.hagerty.com/media/automotive-history/in-the-moment-when-williams-broke-formula-1/