The newly released Hublot Big Bang Ferrari Speciale watches in black ceramic and grey ceramic are by far our favorite watches coming from the successful partnership between the manufacture from Nyon and Maranello's 'Cavallino Rampante'. These new timepieces released in a limited edition of 250 pieces each under ref. 401.FX.1123.VR —Grey Ceramic— and 401.CX.1123.VR —Black Ceramic— incorporate elements of the Ferrari design in a very clever and exceptional way. Fitted with a 45 mm case with alternating polished and satin brushed finished areas, these two new Hublot Big Bang Ferrari Speciale Ceramic pieces are sure to be gone before you know it. What we like about this particular limited edition, is that Hublot did a great job at incorporating certain elements of the Ferrari Speciale 458 into the look of the watch without compromising their DNA or without going over the top compromising the overall look of the watch. These elements include adding a black mesh layer —resembling the grill on the 458 Speciale— to the skeletonized dial of the watch and adding the hood and roof stripes to the strap. While the Hublot Big Bang Ferrari Speciale Ceramic ref. 401.CX.1123.VR features a red strap with white and blue lines mimicking the lines on the Ferrari almost close to perfection, the Hublot Big Bang Ferrari Speciale Grey Ceramic ref. 401.FX.1123.VR features a grey, black and white theme. The straps on these two new watches are Schedoni leather straps that are black rubber lined and equipped with a titanium deployant clasp. The watches are delivered with additional solid black Schedoni leather straps.
The Ferrari Speciale 458. Photo from MotorAuthority.com
Today, ceramic has become a popular material choice in watchmaking for its durability and extreme hardness. But when the original Big Bang models were created in 2005, the notion of “Art of Fusion” meant exploring new possibilities in materials. At the time, ceramic hadn’t been widely accepted as a watch case material, with the majority of black watches made from stainless steel or other metals with a black coating that would chip and fade over time. Within Hublot’s own Research & Development department and Metallurgy new applications and varieties of ceramic are being invented including bright red ceramic and yellow ceramic, as well as metal-ceramic composites such as the proprietary Magic Gold, the only scratch-proof 18-carat gold alloy in existence.
Both watches are powered by the HUB 1241 Unico in-house automatic movement with flyback chronograph and column-wheel mechanism. Taking no less than 4 years to develop, the Unico movement is the fruit of intensive research & development within Hublot’s own manufacture. 330 individually hand-assembled components make up this distinguished movement. With a construction that allows the addition of supplementary functions, the Unico movement can be fitted with other complications and modules such as the Flyback Chronograph, GMT or the Bi-Retrograde Chronograph. The movement provides a power reserve of 3 days when fully wound and its five spoke oscillating weight is fully visible via the display case back. We apologize for the big sticker on the back, but that's how watches were presented to us during Baselworld.
The straps on these two new watches are Schedoni leather straps that are black rubber lined and equipped with a titanium deployant clasp. The watches are delivered with additional solid black Schedoni leather straps.
On the wrist, the watches wear almost true to their size and perhaps slightly bigger and more like a 46mm watch. Both watches look really nice and sporty on the wrist, however, we all have favorites and the grey ceramic one did it for us.
Sticker Price $29,800 USD. For more info on Hublot click here.
