Hublot Big Bang Ferrari Carbon Red Magic 45mm – 401.QX.0123.VR

Hublot's relationship with Ferrari was first commemorated in 2012, with a range of Big Bang Ferrari watches that would grow to a whole fleet over the years. Next up, in 2013, was the Big Bang Ferrari Carbon Red Magic—a luxury sports watch classic that embodies everything Hublot fans love about the brand, and makes a fine job of celebrating the unique power and finesse of Ferrari at the same time.
Here's the thing about luxury sports watches that celebrate car marques: most of them are paying lip-service at best to the personality of the brand they claim to embody. A decal here, a bit of colour there, but basically you're getting the same old watch with a prancing horse on it. Not so Hublot . You only have to look at the brand's LaFerrari lineup to understand that Hublot gets Ferrari. And that is why the company has been allowed to create a whole garage full of Ferrari timepieces.
Given the huge stable of Hublot Ferrari watches, it's important for collectors to understand they're getting the right one. The reference for the Hublot Big Bang Ferrari Carbon Red Magic 45mm is 401.QX.0123.VR . It's powered by Hublot's in-house Unico movement, which features a flyback chrono—in this case, with pushers emblazoned with the red Ferrari name and font. Dial side, you get a bright scarlet central chrono hand, a small seconds, and chunky applied hour and minute hands. The indices are also lumed, and the movement is partly skeletonised with a date wheel circumnavigating the inner ring beneath the indices. The date window is in Ferrari yellow within a subdivision of the small seconds indicator.
The case is waterproof to 100 m. The buckle is titanium, on a folding clasp. Hours are Arabic on the evens and markers on the odds.
It's the crystal that really makes the Big Bang Ferrari Carbon Red Magic stand out from the other models in the Hublot Ferrari showroom. Well, that and the case, but we'll get to that in a minute. First, the glass. It's sapphire, but not as we know it. Hublot mixes secret elements into the sapphire while it is still in liquid form, creating a uniform and deeply exciting shade of red that transforms the whole personality of the watch. This 'Red Magic' treatment actually predates the Ferrari relationship—the first Big Bang Red Magic was released in 2009—but the colouring fits so well with the marque that Hublot wisely decided to use it in their Ferrari-inspired luxury watch
Coloured crystals aren't common in high-end luxury watches because they can present significant legibility issues. After all, what's the point in all that anti-glare treatment, and all the painstaking skeletonising, if the crystal colour means you're always looking at the dial 'through sunglasses'? Only Rolex and Hublot have really pulled this off with any success: Rolex in the Milgauss, and Hublot in its Red Magic models. On the Big Bang Ferrari, the effect is stunning.
Beneath that crystal, not far away from 9 o'clock, you'll find the prancing horse, in delicate polished miniature, dancing proudly on top of the skeletonised movement. And that's not the only automotive detailing used to give the Big Bang Ferrari Carbon Red Magic 45mm a feeling of authenticity. The small seconds dial is ringed with thick black metal, delicately tubed into the shape of a classic Ferrari steering wheel. And if you turn the watch over, you'll see the baseplate of the movement has been spoked, again like a Ferrari steering wheel.
Now, to the case. Caseback and front bezel are done in carbon: a legendary racing material, and one that presents a wonderfully uniform pattern and sheen when it's done properly. Hublot makes its own 'pressed and baked' carbon, and machines it in-house too, for the proper sleek and sophisticated Ferrari look.
The bracelet is in schedoni leather, stitched onto a Hublot rubber band, in a detail perfectly reminiscent of the interior finishing in a Ferrari cockpit. Those brightly-polished H screws add a dash of highlighting, both to the strap attachment on the lugs and to the case overall, and remind the wearer of the watch's automative associations. It's as though Hublot has taken the essence of everything Ferrari —the carbon fibre body, the shining metal innards, the interior finish—and blended it all to create a luxury watch that suggests and celebrates the brand. And in fact, that's exactly what Hublot has done. The Hublot Big Bang Ferrari Carbon Red Magic 45mm is a big, beautiful celebration of the world's most desirable cars. It's also a luxury watch to be proud of.
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Image Credit – officialwatches.com vedere di piu rolex imitazioni e Hermes H-our