TAG Heuer Partners with Team Ikuzawa and Bamford Watch Department to Create a New Racing Chronograph

Motorsports have a loyal following in Japan. To honour the country’s racing heritage, TAG Heuer has introduced the 100-piece limited-edition TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph x Team Ikuzawa by Bamford (Ref. CBN201F.EB0356). The watch has been designed by Bamford Watch Department in partnership with Team Ikuzawa.

In the late 1960s, Tetsu Ikuzawa, a racing driver, toured Europe, drawn by the continent’s prominence in the motor racing circuit. Despite a limited knowledge of English, Ikuzawa took part in the British Formula Three Championship in 1966. In 1967, British Formula One driver Stirling Moss introduced him to Brands Hatch-based Motor Racing Stables. By 1968, he had competed at Williams Formula One. He then joined Porsche as a works driver and became a pioneering Japanese racer at Le Mans and Formula 2. Ikuzawa later founded i&i Racing Development, now known as Team Ikuzawa. The team’s iconic red-and-white livery, featuring a red-crowned crane, reflects the family’s artistic inclination. The baton has now been passed on to Tetsu Ikuzawa’s daughter, Mai Ikuzawa, who has chosen a different industry but has managed to weave her heritage and passion for the automotive industry into fashion and cultural sensibilities.

The last partner in this collaboration is George Bamford, a revered customiser and design connoisseur, known for his expertise in harmonising aesthetics and functionality. Bamford’s profound admiration for TAG Heuer, coupled with his deep-rooted love for cars, makes him an ideal partner for this extraordinary collaboration, involving his long-time friend, Mai Ikuzawa.

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The latest watch is similar to any standard Carrera chronograph, sharing such elements as the 42 mm stainless steel case, the polished bezel, the faceted lugs, the classic crown at 3 o’clock, and the pump-style pushers at 2 o’clock and 4 o’clock to start and restart the chronograph function. It’s the new dial that shows off the modifications. The colour combination is white-and-red, honouring both Japan and the Ikuzawa legacy.

The white opaline dial is home to various red accents, with a red-toned 12-hour counter at 9 o’clock and a white ‘azuré’ minute chronograph counter with a red-tipped white lacquered hand at 3 o’clock. Then there are rhodium-plated hour markers, and hours and minute hands, which sport white Super-LumiNova® and red lacquer, along with a red lacquered central second hand. Then there is a red 60-minute track on the outer periphery of the dial.

Apart from the ‘Team Ikuzawa Choice of Racing Enthusiasts' logo at 6 o’clock, an important detail, when compared with the standard Carrera Chronograph 42 mm, involves the removal of the small seconds counter, which normally rests above the date window, with a white background and red numeral. Powering this limited-edition watch is the in-house calibre Heuer 02 automatic movement with an integrated chronograph movement, armed with a column wheel and vertical clutch and boasting a comfortable power reserve of 80 hours. Turning the watch over showcases the steel screw-down sapphire caseback, with special white markings, ‘XXX/100’, the ‘Team Ikuzawa’ logo, and the ‘BAMFORD WATCH DEPT’ engraving. 

This Carrera Chronograph Team Ikuzawa is worn on a three-link stainless steel bracelet with a steel folding clasp and double safety push buttons. There is an additional white fabric strap, featuring the distinctive ‘Team Ikuzawa’ marking and a Velcro closure. It should also be noted that the numbers, 01 and 100, have been reserved for Tetsu and Mai Ikuzawa respectively. This unique timepiece is also presented in a specially designed, co-branded TAG Heuer x Team Ikuzawa packaging, adorned with vivid white and red colours. As a tribute to Tetsu’s racing prowess in Japan, the box also includes a Porsche miniature, encapsulating the spirit of his remarkable achievements with the Porsche 906 at the 1967 Japanese Grand Prix.