CAZ2018.BA0970
Hard to believe, but this is Max Verstappen's fourth TAG Heuer timepiece in four years (no wonder Daniel Ricciardo went to Renault) and again it's... colourful, and probably not to everyone's taste. But then the world would be a boring place if we all liked the same things wouldn't it? Even Rolex, one of the most conservative watch brands out there, push the boundaries of taste now and again.
At first glance you could be forgiven for thinking, as I did, that all they'd done here was taken the previous iteration of the Max Verstappen Formula 1, removed the stripe from the dial and added the text 'Max Verstappen' to the bezel... but then it dawned on me that actually no, they'd done a lot more than that, not least they've made this the first Max Verstappen watch with a mechanical movement.
Which is funny, because I'm sure it wasn't that long ago we were told (by Mr Biver no less) that Formula 1 was the 'entry level' watch and as such in future it would be quartz only.... and yet the Calibre 16 Formula 1 refuses to die. In fact, as I write this TAG Heuer have just released another Formula 1 Calibre 16, the 'Ultra Green' CAZ2016.
But I digress. This one then is typically bold in design... Max really likes red on his watches doesn't he? Though to be fair, in comparison to the 2018 model this is actually relatively tasteful in it's use of colour. Speaking of which, details are extremely hard to come by on this one, but I would hazard a guess that the hour markers are not lumed... only because my old CAU2012 had orange hour markers and they were not lumed either. Not sure about the hands, but I have my doubts about them too... perhaps someone can provide confirmation either way?
I must say I haven't really taken to any of Max's Formula 1's. The first one was probably the best looking, but every year they seem to have got more and more caustic in design. The second one had that bright red rubber strap and I really didn't like the third version at all, especially that stripe... at least that's gone on this one. The CAZ2018 is definitely a step in the right direction in my opinion, indeed I saw someone describe it on the Calibre 11 forum as 'one for the masses' (which is ironic given it's limited status).
But of course that third one is the only one that's actually been available for the majority of people to buy. The first two were limited in number and as far as I know only available in Max's home country of The Netherlands. This latest version is also a Dutch only release, and not only is it limited to 333 pieces, but from what I've heard it's already sold out! It doesn't even appear on the Dutch TAG Heuer website...
Sorry then, if your interest was piqued, because unless you've already got one of these, well you're unlikely to even see one, never mind have an opportunity to buy. Personally I think the vast majority of these watches (and the first two versions) have been bought as investments, because we're all pretty sure Max is going to be a very successful F1 driver and can you imagine in 10-15 years if Max is a multiple WDC how much these super limited watches are going to be worth, especially if Max ends up moving away from Red Bull and TAG Heuer at some point...
I must admit I'm not really a fan of the F1 Calibre 16 in general, and this one, while aesthetically better than the 2018 quartz release, hasn't really changed my mind. I will be interested though to see if anyone tries to flip one of these in the near future in the same way that people tried to make a quick buck on the Monaco 50th Anniversary releases.
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