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When Richard Mille first watched Bruce McLaren race in 1966, he was immediately captivated by the engineering precision of McLaren’s Formula One car.
More than a driver, McLaren was an innovator who blended lightweight design and strength with artistry. He pioneered the use of a carbon-fiber monocoque chassis and set a new standard in car design.
This fascination eventually led to a partnership between McLaren’s high-octane supercars and Mille’s mastery of watchmaking. Now, nearly a decade into their partnership, Richard Mille has revealed their fourth and boldest collaboration yet: the RM 65-01 Automatic Split-Seconds Chronograph McLaren W1.
The RM 65-01 Automatic Split-Seconds Chronograph Mclaren W1 isn't just a timepiece, it's a story of two legendary brands pushing the boundaries of engineering and artistry in a race against time.
A marriage of form and function, the RM 65-01 McLaren W1 embodies the cutting-edge qualities of McLaren’s engineering in its shape, materials and functionality, as well as the “engine” that powers it.
The inspiration
For McLaren, the “1” designation signifies their most audacious groundbreaking effort. This hybrid supercar, with its 1275PS powertrain, was created to conquer.
“At McLaren we say that not any car can have the ‘1’ title but that ‘the name is earned’,” McLaren Automotive global marketing director Andrea Bermudez says.
Even compared with McLaren’s most iconic models, the F1 and P1, the W1’s twin-turbocharged V8 and electric module engine surpass all expectations.
With an Active Long Tail rear wing for control during high-speed maneuvers and an innovative carbon-fiber shell, called McLaren Aerocell, in the cockpit, the W1 was meticulously designed to reduce weight without sacrificing structural integrity.
"The W1 was designed to give the driver everything they need and nothing they don’t,” Andrea says.
Translating speed to time
How do you translate a car that defies limits into a watch? It’s a simple yet daunting question.
From the beginning, Richard Mille’s creative team knew the answer would be in the subtlety of the details.
Just as the McLaren W1 is engineered to be the brand’s most focused and advanced supercar to date, the watch that complements it should be among the most technically complex of all Richard Mille’s timepieces.
With this formula, the watch had to embody the W1’s spirit, not mimic it.
In 2022, the Richard Mille team was given exclusive access to the first clay mock-ups of the W1 to take inspiration from its purposeful curves and sharp lines.
They were completely surprised. Standing inside McLaren’s Technology Center, they found symphonies in the aerodynamics.
“The view of the car from above, which clearly showed how the body tapered in and out,” Julien Boillat, the casing technical director, says, “[...] it was then that I realized we could use this specific form as inspiration for the bezel.”
Pushing design boundaries
The W1’s design, built around the unique McLaren “aero-cell” architecture, gave rise to the RM 65-01 McLaren W1’s indented “double” bezel, a Carbon TPT bezel on top of a satin-finished and polished grade 5 titanium.
This posed one of the greatest technical challenges in the watch’s development. The bezel required eight prototypes, each one a lesson in precision and patience. But the team worked wonders, eventually discovering an unconventional method. When machined from underneath, the bezel achieved a contoured, thin look.
Measuring just 0.50 mm at its narrowest, which is the equivalent of five Post-It notes, it is the thinnest titanium bezel in Richard Mille’s history.
Reminiscent of the W1’s swooping bodywork that cocoons its engine and occupants, the RM 65-01 McLaren W1’s Carbon case wraps around the watch’s automatic split-second chronograph movement.
Richard Mille skeletonized titanium dial design is similarly inspired by McLaren’s wheel rim patterms, with details highlighted by colors that reflect the supercar’s dashboard.
Salvador Arbona, Richard Mille’s technical director, emphasizes that the RM 65-01 McLaren W1 project perfectly illustrates the watchmaker’s philosophy of “constantly pushing technical boundaries to create innovative watches that include the latest watchmaking developments with a functional, practical and high-performance approach.”
Inside the machine
At the core of RM 65-01 sits a showcase of precision engineering. Richard Mille powered the W1 with its most high-performance automatic chronograph movement, the RMAC4, which beats at a speed of 36,000 vibrations per hour.
This rate of oscillation allows the split-second chronograph to record time down to one-tenth of a second, which is the kind of timekeeping supercars demand.
Two six-column wheels ensure precise and ultra-smooth activation of the chronograph. Starting and stopping without a hitch, the movement’s precision would impress even McLaren’s engineers.
Even more impressive: the RM 65-01 McLaren W1’s feature has a rapid-winding system activated by a Quartz TPT pusher. This system, in a thoughtful signature papaya orange, allows the 60-hour power reserve to be charged swiftly.
“Our watches are designed to be worn and used, whatever the circumstances,” Salvador emphasizes.
It certainly intertwines with W1’s ethos of performance on demand.
More than a watch
Everything on the RM 65-01 certainly serves a purpose.
As a true driver’s watch, the crown operates like a manual gearshift. The “function selector” crown allows the wearer to choose between W for winding, D for date-setting, and H for hand-setting models.
The skeletonized dial is highlighted with McLaren’s legendary colors: vivid orange, cool blue and sharp yellow.
Even the rotor is a masterpiece. The variable-geometry design is crafted to adapt to the wearer’s activity level. With the built-in robustness of the 480-part movement, these features ensure the watch’s reliability for a racetrack event or a day at the office.
When you flip the watch over, a sapphire caseback reveals the RMAC4’s inner workings. Made from grade 5 titanium with a partial, easy-to-grip rubber coating, the crown is adorned with the McLaren “Speedmark”.
Hand-polished, burnished and rhodium-plated, the components gleam under light. It’s a reminder that what’s beneath the surface is just as important as the outside.
Racing against time
The creation of the RM 65-01 was always more than just building a watch. With the high excellence standard of McLaren and the long-standing perfection of Richard Mille, the timepiece is a symbol of luxury and legacy.
That’s also why only 500 pieces of RM 65-01 exist in the world. Each one is a symbol of when two giants in their fields refused to settle for anything less.
Echoing the sentiment in Richard Mille’s prestigious workshop, Julien adds: “We both work to the highest technical specifications with the most high-tech materials. Ergonomics are as important to us as they are to them, and our design language really seems to have gelled.
“The interaction between our two teams and the partnership that it has created have simply become really strong.”
The RM 65-01 Automatic Split-Seconds Chronograph McLaren W1 isn’t just a timepiece, it’s a story of two legendary brands pushing the boundaries of engineering and artistry in a race against time.
And for those lucky enough to wear it, it’s a reminder that true craftsmanship is built with patience and grace, one meticulous step at a time.
