Valentine's Day Gift Guide: 5 Sports Watches He Will Love
From an iconic Royal Oak Offshore to a unique Richard Mille special edition, we selected the top watches that make a perfect Valentine's Day gift for the man in your life.
The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore
Ready for adventure, this robust iteration of the original 1972 Royal Oak design made its debut in 1993, 20 years after its suave predecessor. Intended to offer an overtly sporty feel, the AP Royal Oak Offshore instantly makes its presence known on the wrist with a chunkier case and pronounced angles and lines. Design-wise, it retains the octagonal bezel, engine-turned dial and integrated bracelet that defined the iconic Genta-designed Royal Oak. The Royal Oak Offshore is typically seen with more complicated movements, such as chronographs, and a vibrant palette well-suited to the racing boats that inspired it. In short, the AP Royal Oak Offshore matches ruggedness and technical perfection to Audemars Piguet’s super-high standard.
Royal Oak Offshore Watches Available for Immediate Purchase
The Richard Mille Limited Edition Rafael Nadal Americas Reference RM035
Since launching his eponymous brand in 2001, Richard Mille rewrote the rule book for sports watches, importing the thinking, techniques and materials of motorsport into the world of high watchmaking. Placing ultra-light fabrics, advanced engineering and a tech-savvy design language at the forefront, Richard Mille sports watches are the definition of high performance. A perfect example is the RM035 Limited Edition Rafael Nadal, developed in collaboration with the tennis great. Often seen wearing it during matches, Rafa’s RM035 is light enough to wear during play, yet robust enough to cope with the extreme forces that high-level tennis involves. Richard Mille created the watch design using alloys derived from Formula 1 and aerospace engineering, while its 4.3g movement sits in a specially designed shock-dampened chassis.
Richard Mille Watches Available for Immediate Purchase
The Breguet Marine II 5837 Chronographe Tourbillon
There’s no name more storied in watchmaking than Breguet, the 18th-century design great whose timepieces were worn by everyone from Napoleon and King George III to Winston Churchill. But it was by creating chronometers for the French navy that the Swiss designer Abraham-Louis Breguet’s name was made. And it is that era of his history that provides the inspiration for the Breguet Marine II 5837 Chronograph Tourbillon, which boasts “haute horlogerie” excellence within a robust, 100m water-resistant case. The contrasts are as compelling within the case as on the surface, as Breguet matches silicon escapement parts with hand-chamfered bridges and supremely elegant engine-turned dials.
Breguet Watches Available for Immediate Purchase
The Panerai Luminor Fiddy PAM00127
Panerai’s Luminor 1950 "Fiddy" has inspired a passionate following among new collectors and the brand’s legions of followers, fondly known as the “Paneristi,” all of whom relish the bold utilitarian simplicity of the design. That derives from the brand’s origin as suppliers to the Italian navy and its elite commando divers’ unit. The Panerai Luminor Fiddy PAM00127 in stainless steel comes with the graphic details that have made the Florentine brand’s creations design icons. Namely, the sandwich dial with cutouts for the luminous numerals and hour markers, off-center seconds and massive 44mm case. The Panerai Luminor Fiddy PAM00127 is also equipped with Panerai’s unique, instantly recognizable lock-down crown that both protects it against shocks and ensures its impressive 300m water-resistance.
Panerai Watches Available for Immediate Purchase
The Omega Speedmaster
Instantly recognizable for the purity of its design, the Omega Speedmaster has evolved steadily since the 1960s, when it was selected by NASA, after a series of tough tests, for the 1969 Apollo moon mission led by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. The first watch to be worn on the moon, the Omega Speedmaster is indelibly associated with space exploration. However, it derived from the Swiss watchmaker’s reputation for serious technical precision in Olympic sports timing, from athletics to motorsport and aquatic contests. Designed to be fitted with either strap or bracelet, Omega’s slim Speedmaster case houses the latest in-house movement technology. Though there are numerous anniversary iterations, the spare mid-century dial design details of the 1957 launch model are a constant, ensuring the Omega Speedmaster’s classic status.
