If you want to own a little bit of F1 history, you have the chance to buy one of Michael Schumacher’s watches. The German racing legend jointly holds the record for most F1 world championships won, sitting alongside Lewis Hamilton with seven. Like Lewis, Schumacher also has an impressive watch collection, though that is about to get a bit smaller.
In total, eight of Schumacher’s timepieces are set to go under the hammer in May. All-in-all, around $4.8 million is expected to be raised, though there’s a chance this figure could be significantly higher should two affluent fans get into a bidding war.
The watches will be displayed in New York during Miami Grand Prix weekend, so that’s May 3 to 5. The auction itself is scheduled to happen in Geneva on May 13 at 2 PM central European time, so it may require an early start from many interested, U.S.-based, bidders. Auction house Christie’s has already displayed the watches in Los Angeles, Hong Kong, Dubai, and Taiwan. The sale also marks the 30th anniversary of Schumacher’s first F1 Driver’s Championship win in 1994.
The collection contains some very personal pieces
Brands like Audemars Piguet, F.P. Journe, and Rolex are present among the eight selected watches. The piece that arguably catches the most attention is the white gold Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, which could sell for $280,000. The watch was a Christmas gift from former Ferrari CEO Jean Todt. It features a few unique touches, including a picture of Schumacher’s helmet, the Ferrari prancing horse, and six stars in reference to the six world championships that the racing legend had won when he received the watch in 2003.
The most expensive piece going under the hammer is likely to be Schumacher’s F.P. Journe Vagabondage 1, which auctioneers estimate could sell for as much as $2.2 million. This one is a little more up-to-date than the Royal Oak and comes with seven stars to commemorate all of the driver’s World Title wins. It was another Christmas gift from Todt, coming the following year and marking another victorious season for the German. The dial is in a Ferrari-like red, the helmet and prancing horse logos are there, and there are other nods to what would eventually be “Schumi’s” last championship win.
On the Rolex front, there’s a Paul Newman Daytona. There isn’t anything specifically Schumacher about this one, but it’s still a highly desirable timepiece and arguably the quintessential racing watch. The fact that Schumacher owned and wore it will likely bump the price up, but Paul Newman Daytonas that weren’t owned by racing legends can comfortably fetch six figures in the current market.
It’s unknown if the money from the sale will be going to a particular cause, but it is worth noting that Todt, who gifted a couple of the more exceptional pieces to Schumacher, and the F1 legend did help found a brain injury charity together and have sold watches to raise funds for it before. Schumacher himself suffered a major brain injury in 2013 and hasn’t been seen in public since.
