Rubens Barrichello and Artisans de Genève, present “La Barrichello”
“I have always had a thing for the Daytona, and I wanted to make it my own way. Thanks to Artisans de Genève, my timepiece is now unparalleled, it bears details that make it unique as a F1 car, as my car. A unique movement, particular shapes, exceptional curves and an extraordinary mechanism. I love it ! Artisans de Genève has managed to achieve a technical prowess, each detail is perfectly executed with the same concern for extreme perfection that we find in the racing world”.
Rubens Barrichello
Rubens Barrichello discovered racing at the age of 9 and immediately felt for it, he soon became one of the youngest pilots in the history of the F1 championship. He began by racing for Jordan, then for the great Jacky Stewart before becoming a legend himself at Ferrari. He won 11 Grand Prix and scored 68 podiums.
Rubens Barrichello’s customization
Artisans de Genève would have never imagined the challenge that awaited them when Rubens Barrichello came with the project to revisit his Rolex Daytona. Together, they reinterpreted the timepiece to give it a highly mechanical style, reflecting the pilot’s love for racing. Through this collaboration, Artisans de Genève aims to offer all automotive enthusiasts, in a limited capacity, the unique personalization of Rubens Barrichello, one of the greatest riders of all time.
For more information visit www.artisansdegeneve.com
Performance
La Barrichello is entirely modified by hand. To make Rubens’s watch unique, Artisans de Genève thought about every detail: sandblasted lugs, inner angles, DLC black pushers. The ceramic bezel is handmade in their swiss sworkshops. The counters feature three red and white arrow shaped hands, entirely decorated by hand. For a perfect finish, the marking of the seconds counter is painted by hand in red. Its monochrome style, defined by notes of black and gray, as well as the subtle touches of red, give it a timeless look.
For more information visit www.artisansdegeneve.com
Skeleton movement
Each part of the movement has entirely been reworked by hand. Each part has been disassembled one by one with an extreme precision, then skeletonized and beveled by hand in order to enhance this unique caliber. The main characteristic of La Barrichello is its straight lines, emphasized by the beveling, a know-how requiring a perfect execution that only a few craftsmen manage to achieve. Artisans de Genève and Rubens Barrichello, worked with Philippe Narbel, a beveling expert and went for inner bevels, an extremely meticulous technique that requires hours and hours of work, giving La Barrichello its unique sharp and edgy style.
Modifications
The asymmetrical, beveled, and hand-skeletonized dial is a reminder of the automotive world. Aiming at simplicity, Rubens Barrichello wanted a matte dial, with an intense black that would reveal each detail of the skeleton.
The rotor is inspired by the shape of Rubens Barrichello’s car hubscapes. Manufactured from a piece of 21ct gold, the openworked rotor is fully machined and beveled by hand, it’s then treated with a Black DLC coating.
For more information visit www.artisansdegeneve.com
Specifications
Base: Rolex 116520
Diameter: 40 millimeters
Dial: Skeleton dial beveled by hand, marked Rubens Barrichello
Hands: Hours and minutes hands replaced and painted
Bezel: Ceramic bezel
Case: Rolex 916L steel
Movement: Rolex 4130 skeleton movement, bezeled by hand, with 21ct gold rotor
Materials: Steel
Waterproofing: Water resistant up to 100 meters
Polishing: Hand-polished
Background : Transparent Sapphire back
