CAZ101AL.BA0842
TAG Heuer Boutique / Beaverbrook, Milton Keynes, 5th March 2022
If you ever find yourself in the MK Centre be sure to take yourself along to the TAG Heuer boutique positioned on one of the less travelled 'crossways' (and also accessible via the Beaverbrooks store on the main thoroughfare). It's not a huge store but when I visited it had a pretty decent selection of pieces, including a good sprinkling of new releases and both versions of the new Formula 1 Red Bull Special Edition.
I actually saw the rubber strap version of this watch in a jeweller's window about a week after it was released, but it took me a few more weeks to actually get it on the wrist and to be honest I probably wouldn't have tried both on but for the fact that when I asked to see it I didn't specify which one I wanted and Louise (who was excellent by the way) pulled out the bracelet version first...
Speaking of the bracelet TAG Heuer have upgraded the long standing BA0842 with a new clasp (strange that they didn't give it a new number, I guess they will supply the new version for older models going forward), which is a marked improvement over the old pressed-steel version that they've been persisting with for far too long. And while conventional wisdom has always been that you should always buy watches on the bracelet and buy alternative straps as an extra, for me at least I feel like the rubber strap is so much more interesting and fitting with the overall aesthetic that personally I wouldn't even consider the steel band for this particular model.
I've heard that some people find the new rubber strap far too long, but on my 7.5" wrist it was about right. A bit of tail sure, but nothing I haven't experienced before on my 'Senna' Formula 1. It seems TAG Heuer can't win with their straps, I remember when the 'Gulf' Formula 1 came out everyone (including me) was moaning that the strap was too short and now they are too long. I have heard that some straps are available in more than one length but whether this one is I really don't know. I really like the textured finish and it felt instantly comfortable on the wrist, so much so actually that assuming this would fit the WAZ101A orange dial F1 I would probably buy one just as soon as it comes out in black (or orange...).
On the wrist the watch seems a little smaller than its 43mm diameter suggests, but it's still not a small watch by any means. I think it wears slightly smaller on the rubber strap too, as it moulds closer to the wrist and the dark blue tone shrinks its bulk a little.
On the dial front, while it definitely looks 'busy' those 'grid markings' don't jump out at you like I feared they would, but I still think it would look better without them. The colour selection is representative of Red Bull Racing, but the red around the edge of the dial is a major disappointment... it looks completely washed out, which is a real shame and I can't for the life of me understand why they went with such a weak tone.
I also can't help thinking that a plain white TAG Heuer logo would have worked better, but I guess they wanted to create the 'look' of the Red Bull F1 Team and that of course includes the classic red and green TAG Heuer logo.
Overall though, I think the watch has a much more 'mature' feeling about it than the renders and promotional shots suggested and it is a vast improvement over the previous CAZ101AB / CAZ101AK (both the same watch with different backplates) if still not coming anywhere near the classic and legendary original blue and white CAZ1018. Strange that the coolest 'Red Bull' Formula 1 is the one that has the least in common with the Red Bull aesthetic... indeed I've always thought it was a watch that had been previously designed and had the Red Bull logo slapped on the back merely because it was blue, even though it was clearly completely the wrong shade of blue. But there we are. Other opinions are of course available.
My initial impression of this watch was that the rubber strap version was the way to go and trying them both on has only reinforced that opinion and I'm actually really looking forward to seeing more Formula 1s on these cool rubber straps (I believe there are three very colourful chronographs coming in the next few months so look out for those). But my overall feel for this watch hasn't really changed, it's still a solid 7.5 / 10. Not something I can see myself buying, but still a great step up from the rather dreary previous model (which also featured the same awful washed-out red on the bezel incidentally).
Ultimately I can't help but feel just a little bit disappointed with this one. When I first saw the photos on release day I really thought that maybe my next watch had arrived, but it was not to last. I don't want to sound too negative, but my favourite thing about this watch is the rubber strap and that's not really anything to shout about is it?
Actually, I think I can live with the grid markings, because they don't jump out at you every time you look at the dial, but that washed-out red ring around the edge of the dial is a killer; it's so apparent that I think it would really bug the hell out of me...
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