Chopard
Introducing Chopard Mille Miglia 2020 Race Edition and the Mille Miglia Lab One
Revived as a classic and vintage car rally in 1977, the Mille Miglia found its origin during the early 1920s when a group of wealthy auto enthusiasts in Brescia discovered the Italian Grand Prix was about to be moved to Milan and its new track at Monza. A legendary car race that was run 24 times between 1927 and 1957, the challenging and sometimes dangerous race looped through Northern Italy, starting and finishing in Brescia, a city in the northern Italian region of Lombardy.
The Mille Miglia race took place on roads closed down to civilian traffic, first heading east to Verona, south to the Adriatic Coast, then on to Rome, finally heading back north through a few of Italy’s most renowned and beautiful cities before returning to Brescia. The legendary race required great skill and strength to finish the 1000 miles, often taking over sixteen hours of driving with very few pit stops. Decades later, the race has taken on mythic proportions.
Nowadays, the Mille Miglia is considered one of the most beautiful races in the world. Cars eligible to take part in the contemporary Mille Miglia are those that took part in at least one edition of the historic 1000 Miglia held during its heyday. Think pristine vintage Alfa Romeos, Ferrari’s, and Lancia driving through the world’s most magnificent Italian landscapes. With a superb location and lineup like that, it’s no wonder that the World Sponsor and Official Timekeeper of the Mille Miglia is Chopard.
Since becoming the 1000 Miglia’s principal partner and official timekeeper in 1988, Chopard has created a new Mille Miglia timepiece every year. For 2020, the edition is only 1250 pieces in a full black theme, 1,000 in bead-blasted black DLC-treated stainless steel, and 250 in two-tone bead-blasted black DLC-treated stainless steel combined with ethically sourced 18k rose gold.
A second introduction from Chopard has also found inspiration in the Mille Miglia intended for a slightly different audience. A new concept watch called the Mille Miglia Lab One proposes a futuristic shaped case and a new kind of tourbillon movement. The first self-winding tourbillon from Chopard looks to technical innovations usually found in high-performance race cars using state-of-the-art materials and innovative functionality. Multiple patents make their debut, starting with a stop-tourbillon mechanism and an inventive invisible crown.
Mille Miglia 2020 Race Edition
Movement
Mechanical movement with automatic winding; hours minutes and seconds; small seconds at three; 30 minute and 12-hour counters; date window between four and five, tachymeter scale; 28.60 mm diameter; 28,800 vph (4 Hz) COSC certified; 42-hour power reserve
Case
42 mm bead-blasted DLC-treated stainless steel (all black)
42 mm bead-blasted DLC-treated stainless steel, bezel in 18k ethical rose gold (two-tone)
Bracelet
Black calfskin strap with tone on tone stitching, perforations inspired by driving gloves, black rubber lining inspired by 60s Dunlop racing tires, folding clasp in bead-blasted DLC-treated stainless steel
Price
Ref. 168589-3028 (all black) 1,000 piece limited edition
Ref. 168589-6002 (two-tone) 250 piece limited edition
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Mille Miglia Lab One
Movement
Self-winding Chopard 04.03-M; central display of hours and minutes, small seconds at six, aperture-type large date display at twelve, power-reserve display between seven and eight, retrograde display of days between four and five, tourbillon at six; 39 x 38.60 mm, 28,800 vph (4 Hz) Tourbillon with stop function, Variner balance with Phillips terminal curve. 60-hour power reserve
Case
48.6 x 46 mm bead-blasted titanium, black DLC treatment, cushion-shaped; water-resistant to 50m
Bracelet
Rubber lined carbon bracelet with a folding clasp in DLC coated black bead-blasted titanium
Price
Ref. 168599-3001 20 piece limited edition in black bead-blasted titanium
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