Style Edit: How Richard Mille defines high-performance, from its horological masterpieces like world’s thinnest watch, the RM UP-01 Ferrari, to supporting the Le Mans Classic event and a yacht race

Dec 15 , 2023

Classic cars and an all-female lineup are a feature of the Rallye des Princesses. Photos: Handout

Apart from the Le Mans Classic, Richard Mille also supports the Rallye des Princesses that features an all-female line-up of drivers racing in vintage vehicles

The Richard Mille Cup, a yachting regatta launched this year, saw 15 vintage vessels battle it out over two weeks from Falmouth in the UK to Le Havre in France

There’s no area of human endeavour that better dovetails with the spectacular timepieces produced by Richard Mille than the high performance world of sport. With that in mind, the Swiss luxury watchmaker has long been a dedicated supporter of leading sporting events around the world on both the racetrack and the water, from vintage car event the Le Mans Classic to women’s car rally the Rallye de Princesses to yacht race, the Richard Mille Cup.

Nighttime pit stops at the Richard Mille Le Mans Classic 2023

With the Le Mans Classic, Richard Mille celebrates the illustrious history of motorsport. The race, at France’s legendary Circuit de la Sarthe, where the 24 Hours of Le Mans also takes place, featured 800 racing cars this year, divided into six classes covering eras from 1923 to 1981, with a further 8,500 club cars on public display. The sponsor of the event since it launched in 2002, Richard Mille also releases a timepiece to mark each edition – in 2023, it was the RM 72-01 LMC, the brand’s first ever flyback chronograph.

The Rallye des Princesses, with an all-female line-up, is a 1,600km race from Paris to Nice, France

Classic cars are also the stars at the Rallye des Princesses, where an all-female line-up of competitors drive the vintage vehicles more than 1,600km from Paris, winding their way down some of France’s most beautiful roads to Nice in the southeastern corner of the country. A regularity race, where the aim is to cover a certain distance while remaining close to a target average speed, the event is sponsored by Richard Mille, and is the perfect reflection of another of its timepieces, the RM 07-04, its first women’s sports watch and a symbol of empowerment.

This year’s launch of the Richard Mille Cup sees the brand extend its support to yacht racing

This year, Richard Mille extended its support for refined sporting action to the water, with the launch of the Richard Mille Cup. The event saw 15 vintage yachts, dating from the end of the 19th century to the late 1930s, battle it out over two weeks on a race from Falmouth in the UK to Le Havre in France. In their time, these boats represented the ultimate in performance and innovation, in much the same way as the RM UP-01, Richard Mille’s spectacular reimagination of the wristwatch, slimmed down to a barely believable 1.75mm.