Lewis Hamilton Receives $600,000 Gift From Sponsor After Ferrari Move

Lewis Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton / Ferrari Press Imag

Lewis Hamilton has received an iconic wristwatch worth $600,000 following his switch to Ferrari from Mercedes. The seven-time world champion's arrival at Ferrari's Maranello headquarters on January 20 marked the beginning of a new chapter in his F1 career.

However, Hamilton's move to Scuderia also comes with exclusive perks from its sponsors as part of promotional campaigns, including a luxury timepiece with integral components made of red and yellow gold.

The Briton not only received an overwhelming welcome from Ferrari but even the Tifosi, who brought the city to a standstill to see their new favorite driver on his first day at Ferrari. Hamilton's first track day was conducted a day later on Ferrari's famed Fiorano test track under the updated Testing of Previous Cars (TPC) regulations.

Hamilton also got to work immediately with one of Ferrari's key sponsors—the Les Breuleux-based luxury Swiss watch brand, Richard Mille. A report from F1i states that Hamilton received the rare $600,000 RM 74-02 from the luxury watch brand to sport on his wrist.

The RM 74-02 sports a unique skeletonized automatic-winding tourbillon movement with the baseplate and bridges machined from 18K 5N red gold and 18K 3N yellow gold. Richard Mille states that everything on the watch has been "constructed according to extremely rigorous specifications. For example, a casing ring is no longer used, and the movement is fixed by titanium screws."

Hamilton's parting of ways with Mercedes saw the end of his partnership with another watchmaker, IWC Schaffhausen. His new Ferrari teammate, Charles Leclerc, recently sported the Richard Mille RM 72-01 Flyback Chronograph worth $335,000. As a result, the combined value of the watches worn by both Ferrari drivers approaches $1 million.

Leclerc and Hamilton took part in Ferrari's TPC test at Fiorano, followed by a second test at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, where the 40-year-old driver reportedly crashed into the barriers but was unharmed by the impact. Speaking about his track day in a Ferrari SF-23 F1 car, Hamilton said:

"I’ve been lucky enough to have many firsts in my career, from the first test to the first race, podium, win and championship, so I wasn’t sure how many more firsts I had but driving a Scuderia Ferrari HP car for the first time this morning, was one of the best feelings of my life.

"When I started the car up and drove through that garage door, I had the biggest smile on my face. It reminded me of the very first time I tested a Formula 1 car, it was such an exciting and special moment, and here I am, almost twenty years later, feeling those emotions all over again.

"I already knew from the outside how passionate the Ferrari family is, from everyone in the team to the Tifosi! But to now witness it firsthand as a Ferrari driver has been awe-inspiring. That passion runs through their veins and you can’t help but be energised by it. I’m so grateful for the love I have felt from everyone in Maranello this week, we have a lot of work to do but I can’t wait to get started."


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