After enlivening F1 tracks for more than 10 years, Australian Porsche Motorsport driver Mark Weber has become Chopard’s new ambassador. 

With the appointment, the Swiss watchmaking and jewellery firm has strengthened its presence in the world of classic racing, which is accentuated through a partnership with Porsche Motorsport, the team to which Chopard is the official timing partner. 

Webber’s Formula 1 career started with Minardi in 2002 and in 2009, while he was at Red Bull Racing, he had his first win at the German Grand Prix. 

After 12 seasons in Formula 1, 36 podium finishes, 11 pole positions and nine Grand Prix victories, Weber joined the Porsche Motorsport team in 2014 to accompany the German carmaker’s return to the World Endurance Championship (WEC). 

A distinguished sportsman and great competitor, Webber has set himself even tougher objectives such as winning this year’s WEC as well as the 24 Hours of Le Mans. 

He shares with Chopard this drive for precision and mechanical achievement.


QUEST FOR PERFORMANCE

This partnership between Webber and Chopard is in tune with an agreement signed in 2014 between the Geneva-based manufacture and Porsche Motorsport, which is based on shared passions. 

Highly reliable and innovative, the exceptional mechanics produced by the workshops of both Porsche Motorsport and Chopard have made their mark on their respective universes and remain benchmarks among fans of automobile sports and watchmaking alike. 

For Chopard, the partnership with Webber is the continuation of its passionate commitment to motor racing and the development of its Superfast watch collection. 

“What I appreciate most about Chopard is the veritable passion that this company in the forefront of watchmaking has for automobile sports as well as the family nature of the business,” says Webber. “There are no smoke screens; with Karl-Friedrich Scheufele, Co-President of Chopard, I am dealing with a true enthusiast and connoisseur of motor car racing and mechanics. I am proud to be part of the Chopard family.”

He continues: “Being associated with one of the most prestigious watchmaking manufacturers is a great honour for me. In competition, time is our best friend or our worst enemy and the precise measurement of time is one of our major concerns. Partnering with Chopard and the Superfast collection, which consists of elegant, very precise watches inspired by racing, is therefore completely natural.”

For Karl-Friedrich, the association is exceptional in more ways than one. “Since the very first time we met, we sensed Webber’s strong interest in Chopard and the watches we produce. He clearly recognised the similarities that exist between our two professions. I know we share the same values of excellence and the same passion for automobile sports. Being able to rely on a driver as experienced as this is a veritable honour for us. We look forward to sharing this adventure.”


SUPERFAST WATCHES

Superfast watches are a faithful companion to Webber in the achievement of his greatest automobile feats, and are precise, reliable partners for every race. 

Like Porsche racing cars, the models in the collection maintain the codes inherent to the world of car racing. In the same way as the Porsche 919 Hybrid, they provide a testing ground for Chopard, enabling it to push the boundaries of its watchmaking skill, to implement new processes or to incorporate the use of innovative materials, says the manufacture.

The Superfast watches are simultaneously modern and imposing, free from any restraints, featuring clean lines resulting in a resolutely virile design.

A multitude of elements – like the racing steering wheel on the rubber-clad gold crown, the grooves engraved on the sides of the lugs and the pushers reminiscent of cooling fins, or even the screws on the bezel inspired by those found on wheel rims – are all nods to the world of automobile racing. 

Equipped with a manufacture movement with engine-inspired finishes, they are designed for devotees of fine watchmaking who will be capable of taming the inevitable sense of raw power that they produce, says Chopard.